Cat and Dog
by scorpioslayer
Summary: KibaxOC. He's a dog. She's a cat. You get the picture. They're bound to hate each other. But then...love can do the strangest things... COMPLETE! R&R!
1. Yin and Yang

A KibaOC fic! Yay!

**Disclaimer**: Don't own them...if i did..(evil, naughty look) ahem..right

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**Cat and Dog**

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**Prologue**

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He was in senior class, and she was one year below him. They knew each other's name, seen the other around but they never talked.

She doesn't really care and neither does he.

He's not related to her, her life doesn't revolve around him so there was no connection what so ever between them or even their clans.

Except that they would never see eye to eye. She had never talked or discussed or argued anything with him to prove this point. It's just a known fact.

She and he were like oil and water. They can't mix together to make one solution.

If they were put together, they would be like two bombs in a can.

They don't have to become friends to figure out this, it was in their nature after all.

Like cats and dogs.

She's the cat and he's the dog.

She has a gray cat named Yue, and he has a white dog called Akamaru.

She's Maneki Tsubasa, and he's Inuzuka Kiba.

They're two worlds different.

But they were yin and yang.

They were fated to be together, no matter how different they were.

xxx

How did they got together, they couldn't really recall. The details were sketchy and somehow painful.

But it all started in the Academy. He was one of the troublemakers in his class, and she was the quiet one in hers.

They had never spoken a word to the other, they would just keep walking if they see the other pass by, pretending he or she wasn't there. She was fine with it and so was he.

It's not like he had a grudge against her and neither did she, but it was just how things were. Their clans had never worked together, they weren't fighting or anything, it's just…happened that way.

The Third Hokage did not do anything about it, not that he didn't care, but he knew it was for the best, best for himself, best for the two clans and best for their village.

Everyone knew about the Inuzuka and the Maneki clans. They didn't try to do anything about it; it's just in their nature.

So when one time the two of them had collide into each other, everyone knew it only meant trouble.

"Ittai" she said when she fell to the ground after the collision. He fell too, rubbing his sore behind. "Oi, watch where you're going," he said, without looking up.

Her ears shot up. "Excuse me? You're the one who ran into me,"

"Whatt?" he stared at her, "no I did not,"

She was quiet, yes, but that doesn't mean she's shy. Inside, she was a boiling volcano, waiting to erupt.

"Yes you did,"

"No I did not"

"You did"

"Did not"

"Did too!"

"Did not!"

"DID TOO!"

"DID NOT!"

"YES YOU DID!"

"NO I DID NOT!"

Dear God, they were only 6 and 5 years old back then.

They were standing in front of each other now, nose against nose. Her cheeks were flushed, his ears were red.

It was during lunch time when they had begun their first argument. Everyone had stopped eating to see what the commotion was all about. They surrounded the two boiling kids, who were sending each other death glares.

"Dog breath" she smirked.

"Stinky cat," he added.

"Alright alright, stop it both of you," the Academy teacher, Iruka came to the rescue after a concern student told him about the fight.

"He started it," she said, crossing her arms.

"Only after she begun it," he replied back.

"Shut up you"

"You shut up"

"Okay, okay, back to class everybody," Iruka clapped and shooed the children away. Then he turned to face them. "Kiba, you will follow me,"

"Hn," was his reply.

"And Tsubasa, she's waiting for you," Iruka pointed towards the female teacher standing a few feet away, hands on her hips.

"Honestly Kiba, I thought only Naruto makes problem, not you too," Iruka said as he walked with the Inuzuka boy.

"What has gotten into you, I've never seen you like this," was what Tsubasa had received on her other end.

xxx

They had never spoken since then. She last saw him in the Academy when he came to his genin's explanatory meeting and was assigned to a team. After that, she was left in the Academy for her final year.

A year afterwards she had become a genin too and was assigned into her own three-man group with two boys in her class; Kenji Tahara and Sho Kitai under a female jounin, Fumie Omura.

Then her life as a genin had begun. She had done her best in her missions and her training. She had mastered her family's jutsu, Cat's Claws and was working her way up to more jutsus with her beloved cat, Yue.

Tsubasa and Kiba had seen and passed each other during their genin time but they didn't care. He was just and outsider to her and vice versa. But apparently, her sensei and his sensei were friends and they were beginning to see the other more often.

But no words were spoken. It was just between their teachers. She would wave and said hello to his teammate, Hinata and that was all. He would grin and say hey to her teammates and that was the limit. After that he would talk to his team or play with his dog and she would do the same.

But during their little indirect meeting, he would study her quietly and so would she.

He still looked the same with his gray hooded jacket and his short. She had never seen him with his hood down and wondered how his real hair was like. He had the Inuzuka look; tanned, dog-slit eyes, two red triangle marks down his cheeks and fangs teeth.

And when Kiba played with Akamaru, he would steal glances towards her. Her black hair was always in a bun with chopsticks in them. And just like him, she had the Maneki look; pale skin, golden pair of eyes and a red cat's claws tattoo on her left arm.

She wore a white, short-sleeve zipped up body suit that reached her knee. From what he notices, her clothes were the clingy type and if only she had fully grown in the right places, he wondered how she would look in it.

And every time he came up with that thought, he would shake it away, disgusted that he would think that way about her and continued playing with his beloved dog.

He was thirteen then and she was twelve.

Their worlds were perfect without the other. Their clans could live without the help of the other and so can they.

The cold war between the two clans was still going on, neither anyone from their clans nor anybody outside of their clans tried to get the two clans together.

They had learned that putting the two clans together would be like putting two bombs in the same can, and for Konoha's safety they wouldn't want that to happen.

They had learned that oil doesn't mix with water.

They had learned that cats don't mix with dogs.

But all hell broke loose when the Fifth Hokage took place. She decided that the time for the cold war to end had come. She decided that it was time that cats and dogs live together in harmony.

That they were yin and yang.

Two opposites.

And putting two opposites together would make one good thing.

They would be perfect.

That was what the Hokage thought. She knew she can make it happen. She knew she can change the fate of the Inuzuka Clan and the Maneki Clan and put them together.

And she had decided to start it with Kiba and Tsubasa.

And they had never seen it coming until it hit them…

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What do you think? Review!

'Just to let you know...'Maneki' comes from the words "Maneki Neko" which means _Beckoning lucky cat_. You know the cat figurine with one paw raised toits head, use to attract people into a store? Yeah that one. I didn't want to name the clan 'Maneki', because it only means Beckoning lucky, it doesn't even have the word 'neko' and the meaning 'cat' in it.But it doesn't sound nice if I changed it to 'Maneko' (and I don't even know what that means) . And my sister and I went through a terrible time looking around for Japanese name with 'Neko' in them..So finally we gave up and just decided to name it Maneki. At least it's the closest thing cat-related.

Okay that's all, you can review now!


	2. Twisted Fate

Whoa the first chapter! Hope you all enjoy it!

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Lunarangel's Dark Flame- Thank you for reviewing! Updated already Hope you enjoy it

The ShapeShifting Chick- Hehe, thank you so much for your review. Hope you like this chapter!

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**Cat and Dog**

Chapter 1

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"WHATTTTTTTTTTT!"

Tsunade had to close her ears to block out the loud screaming coming from the two new chuunins. Neji blinked his eyes, surprised and gave the two chuunins a **dirty** look.

"You've got to be kidding me!" Kiba said, and Akamaru barked in agreement.

"Please Tsunade-sama, anyone but _him_!" Tsubasa said eyes wide open.

"Wait…," Tsunade started but was ignored.

"What does that supposed to mean!" he asked her, narrowing his eyes.

She glared at him and Yue hissed at the Inuzuka boy. "You know what it means, idiot"

"Ahem…" Tsunade said, tapping her fingers on her desk.

"What does that supposed to mean!"

"Idiot means idiot, IDIOT!"

"WILL THE TWO OF YOU STOP IT!" Tsunade shouted, rubbing her forehead. The two chuunins stopped and looked at the Hokage, embarrassed with their selves.

Neji smirked.

"Sorry," they both mumbled at the same time, avoiding each other's eyes.

"Right, like I was saying, I called the three of you here to do a special mission," Tsunade begun, looking at her clipboard.

"Why can't we go in our own teams?" Tsubasa asked, feeling uncomfortable.

"Because the three of you are from honorary clans and specialized in certain senses," Tsunade answered almost lazily.

"Then, my team can go. Hinata, Shino and I are specialist," Kiba said quickly.

"True, but this mission needs a specialist in flexibility and hearing sense, and Maneki clan is the specialist in those areas. You'll have Neji in replace of Hinata, and he's a jounin, so he'll be the team leader." She said, looking at the young jounin.

Neji nodded, understood.

Tsubasa crossed her arms, her eyebrows furrowed, looking serious. "If we're talking about flexibility, are we stealing something?"

Neji and Kiba looked at her, surprised. They were going to steal something? That didn't sound like a noble thing a ninja should do.

Tsunade sighed, "Probably, I'm not sure. It's what the client asked, and we just do what they want, that's our job as ninjas."

"What's the mission?" Neji asked.

Tsunade looked at her clipboard, "You are to see this man and he will explain your mission," she showed them a picture of a balding man probably in his late 60s. "This is your client, Amakura-san, and here's where he lives," she said, pulling a piece of paper from her clipboard and passing the paper and the picture to Neji.

"You'll start your mission tomorrow," Tsunade said, waving her hand lazily, gesturing them to start leaving.

Tsubasa looked at the Hokage and sighed, there was no way she could try to stop the Hokage now. "Hai, arigatou Hokage-sama," she said bowing down slightly and walked towards the door.

"Neji, you wait here," she heard the Hokage said and quickly left the room to avoid clashing with Kiba.

xxx

"You're kidding me," Kenji told her, his mouth full.

"I wish," she rolled her eyes and took a forkful of her cheesecake.

"You know one day it's gonna happen anyway, right?" Sho told her, sipping on his tea. The three of them were hanging out in their favorite café; it was their tradition where they would just meet to talk just as friends and teammates, leaving their training and duties as ninjas to wait. It was according to Fumie-sensei, a way to tighten their bond and improve their teamwork.

"No," she answered simply, giving Yue a bit of her cake. The cat meowed in reply.

"Well on the bright side you have Neji-san on your team," Kenji, her handsome, brown-haired teammate said.

Tsubasa raised an eyebrow, "So? What he got to do with this problem?"

Kenji took a mouthful of his pastry and stared at the ceiling, thinking. "Not sure, but he'd be able to stop the two of you from killing yourself, I think"

Tsubasa rolled her eyes again, "That's helpful." She picked up her orange juice and drank it.

Sho smiled, "Well you can't avoid it, might as well go on with it, just…control your temper and don't-kill-him" he said.

Tsubasa laughed, "No pacifist talk today Sho-kun?" she joked. Sho pushed his deep red hair from getting into his eyes and grinned, "I think you heard enough of my preaching,"

"Tsubasa, don't look, but your enemy is here," Kenji said looking at the entrance door. Tsubasa who was sitting in front of him looked at her cat beside her, "Yue-chan,"

The cat meowed and turned it's head towards the door. Then she turned back to her owner and confirmed Kenji's information. Tsubasa sighed, "Of all places, why must I see him in my favorite café?"

Sho who was sitting beside Kenji, looked the entrance door. "Well he spotted you and refused to come in, only his other two teammates are coming in," he told her.

"Well good," Tsubasa replied and heard the bell, indicating someone had opened the door. Tsubasa turned her head slowly and looked at the counter, where the two chuunins stood, looking at the cakes inside the display cooler.

"What are they doing?" she asked her teammates.

"Uh, buying a cake" Sho answered, matter-of-factly.

Tsubasa turned her head and watched as Hinata said something to Shino and he nodded. Then she pointed the bakery lady to a certain cake.

While waiting for the lady to pack the cake, Hinata noticed Tsubasa and smiled at her. The latter replied back with a smile and a wave.

"Okay, they're gone now," Kenji told her after a while as he watched the senior team walked away from the café, Shino carrying the cake box.

"He was giving you _the_ look though," Sho said, frowning, emphasizing on the word 'the'. Tsubasa rolled her eyes, "Like I care. Anyway, it's weird seeing them buying a cake though," she stated.

Kenji shrugged and drank his coke. "Beats me, but I've heard that the Aburames have sweet tooth,"

xxx

"You're leaving tomorrow?" Hinata asked Kiba.

Kiba nodded his head, still frowning over the fact that he had to go on a mission with a Maneki. "Aaa, with Neji and _her_," he said, looking annoyed. Akamaru barked. Kiba rolled his eyes, "tell me about it,"

"Neji-niisan is your team leader?" the Hyuuga asked. "Aa," Kiba nodded in reply.

"Remember not to go against your team leader's orders," Shino said in his expressionless voice. The three of them were walking together—with Shino carrying a box of cake (he insisted on it)—towards their teacher's house.

It was Kurenai's birthday and they had all chipped in to buy their teacher her favorite cake.

"Jeez, thanks for the tip," Kiba laughed. "But how about do kill her and feed her to Kuromaru if she breathes in the same air as me?"

"Kiba-kun," Hinata said, slightly worried with her teammate's words.

Kiba laughed sourly, "Kidding, Hinata. I won't feed her to Kuromaru…I think Akamaru would love to do the honor…" he said looking at his dog. Akamaru barked in reply.

"Kiba-kun!"

"Kidding, kidding." He grinned.

"Remember to have respect towards each other, it is a vital key to form teamwork," Shino added.

Kiba sweat dropped. "I think it'd be much better if you were the team leader for the mission," he said jokingly.

"Hn," came the reply as the three of them stopped in front of their teacher's apartment.

"Shall we then?" Kiba grinned, looking at his teammates.

xxx

"You're late," Tsubasa said, crossing her arms, her voice filled with annoyance.

It was morning the next day. Neji and Tsubasa stood outside the gate, waiting for their third member. Kiba arrived a few minutes later, riding on his giant dog.

Kiba rolled his eyes, "You're late" he mimicked her voice as he jumped down off Akamaru.

"Hn," she said, turning on her heels. "Come on Neji-san let's go," she said and started walking. Neji turned to Kiba who was watching Akamaru return to his normal adult size.

The young Hyuuga started walking and Kiba followed, Akamaru beside him.

Neji noticed the auras his two new teammates were radiating. Neji sighed quietly as he remembered the Hokage's words to him yesterday.

"_It will be quite tough for you to handle the two of them, Neji" Tsunade told him. "It'd be something like Naruto—" then Tsunade paused for a moment, deep in thinking. "Scratch that, at least they're a bit better than Naruto,"_

_Neji_ _kept quiet. If he was Shikamaru, he would have said the word playing in his head right now, troublesome._

"_But I need you to make sure that they won't kill each other," she told him, with a sympathetic smile._

"_Hai, Tsunade-sama," he said._

Neji looked at the two chuunin and started thinking. Why is it that he would always have annoying people in his team?

As if Lee and Gai weren't enough, and then there was Naruto too, the time he was in the same group with Neji, when they were chasing Sasuke, and fighting with Raiga, and now he has to take care after two chuunins who are fated to hate each other.

Was this his fate too? To be surrounded with annoying, troublesome people?

Neji sighed again, quietly and unnoticeably to the others.

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Okay, hope you like this chapter. Reviews please! They really make my day! Again, do pardon the grammar mistakes.

When I said that Kiba was riding Akamaru…it's true! Okay first off, all of them become chuunins when they're around 15-16, so that's their age right now. Except Neji's a jounin and he's around 16-17. yeah.

Okay back about the giant Akamaru, yes it's true. I've looked (and read) about it. It's in um…manga chapter 282. yes. But about Akamaru changing size…that one I'm not sure, so that one is fictional.

Then what Neji just explained above, when he said that Naruto was in the same team with him twice; okay once was when they were chasing Sasuke and fighting with the Sound Four. The other time is only in the filler (meaning, it's not in the manga series) Naruto anime where Naruto joined Team Gai (without Gai… thank goodness! Haha, jk jk) and…okay I gave enough spoiler already.

Go watch it if you want! It's Naruto episode 152-157. Go Lee!

Click the review button, yes? Please and thank you!


	3. It ain't over, Sister!

Second chapter up! Read and Review! 

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Swaying Mercury: I think Kiba is kind too! I love him! hope you like this chapter!

xxMeerxx: haha..thanks, enjoy this chappie!

The ShapeShifting Chick: Thanks, hope you like this one

Lunarangel's Dark Flame: haha..no dog will be eating my OC! sorry, but there won't be a mission in this chapter.

twisted irony: all you care about is Neji...huh..

Kai Hiei Sasuke Bankotsu Ray and Matt are so all mine : oh wow, your name is so long, i have to go to your profile page and copy and paste your name! can I just call you Skye in thefuture?haha, updated! PS: what does your pen name means anyway?

blue tigress: OMG, I LOVE YOU SOOO MUCH! hugs! haha...thanks for all your BRILLIANT ideas! actually i did kinda have the bath scene in my head..but you just make it even more better. When I was reading your review, i was like, "lightbulb lighting!" if you don't mind, i'd like to use your ideas. they're brilliant! i'll credit you of course when i use it in the upcoming chapters. thanks again!

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**Cat and Dog **

Chapter 2

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_Knock knock_.

Tsunade looked up from the paper in front of her, "Come in," she said, sensing that it was Shizune.

"Tsunade-sama" the young medic jounin said as she opened the door.

"What is it?" the Hokage turned her attention back to the documents on her desk.

"They're back,"

Godaime's eyes lightened up. She doesn't need Shizune to explain who 'they' were, she knew them already.

"I see," Tsunade propped her chin on her hand. "How was it?"

"The mission was a success,"

"No no," the blonde sennin shook her head. "I meant—"

Shizune clapped her hands together, remembering something. "Oh!" she looked at the Hokage, hesitantly, "I-um, well you better see them yourself."

Tsunade raised an eyebrow. "Very well, bring them in,"

Shizune smiled as she walked to the door, "Yes, Tsunade-sama."

xxx

The Hokage stared at the three teenagers in front of her. They looked fine, though tired—she can see the bags under their eyes—they looked lively.

Especially with the murderous aura hanging in the air.

"Report," Tsunade ordered.

Neji was the first to spoke, "Our mission was to guard the client Amakura-san as he brought the Feudal Lord's mansion's blueprints to him, we were attacked on the way by a group of bandits, defeated them and made Amakura-san made it to the Feudal Lord's mansion safely. Mission accomplished."

Tsunade nodded. "That seems like an easy mission." She stared at the ceiling, "But why is there tension in the air?"

"That—" Neji paused and turned to face his other two team members.

Kiba and Tsubasa—who were present in the room, but kept quiet—were standing as far as they could from the other. They were both emitting thick, angry, dangerous aura that filled the air.

"What happened?" Tsunade stared at the two of them.

Tsubasa took a deep breath and sighed. "Nothing that is related, Hokage-sama," she said softly.

Kiba looked away, not answering.

The thick atmosphere was still there.

"If it concerns the teamwork between all of you, then it is related." Tsunade answered, leaning against her chair.

"Neji, report." Tsunade said, her eyes narrowed. "And this time, about the two of them,"

Neji looked at the two chuunins, they weren't looking back at him—Kiba was crossing his arms and staring at the portrait on the wall beside him, Tsubasa was looking at her nails—and he faced the Hokage again.

"They had argued during the mission," he said simply.

"Explain more," Tsunade said, waving her hand.

Neji cleared his throat, "They argued on which roads to follow,"

"And?"

Neji paused, "…that's all."

Tsunade raised an eyebrow, "That's all? Over a road? Which one did you choose then?"

"The one that was the shortest," Neji replied, he was getting sick of replying everything.

"And who chose that?" Tsunade asked, but before anyone could answer she saw Kiba smirked. It must have been him then.

"And the other road was the longest?" Tsunade asked.

Neji looked—more like glared—at Tsubasa, mentally telling her to answer the Hokage's question. Tsubasa understood and sighed.

"Yes, but it was also the safest," she answered. "Unlike the shortest road, which was quite dangerous,"

"The mission was accomplished," Kiba interrupted, staring at the wall in front of him.

Tsubasa narrowed her eyes—still sour about the whole roads choice and that Kiba interrupted her—and she snapped. "We were attacked!"

"We were SUPPOSED to be attack," Kiba turned around to face here, "Why do you think we were hired anyway!"

"Being a ninja doesn't mean that we have to fight all the time! It's about completing the mission, which was to protect the client!" Tsubasa's face was red.

"And we DID!" he said crossing his arms. "Neji chose the road that I picked, and we COMPLETED the mission!"

Tsubasa was gritting her teeth, "He did that because you are friends!"

Neji stared at the wall in front of him, "I chose the road because it was the most suitable one," he corrected.

"Although the road was short, it was geographically dangerous too, making it harder for bandits to be hiding there. The longest did look safe, but it was what the bandits would expect and also easier for them to hide." He explained.

Tsubasa opened her mouth, then closed it again, not knowing what to reply. Finally she gave up and hmph-ed while crossing her arms. Kiba smirked proudly.

"That was it?" Tsunade rubbed her forehead. Neji nodded.

The Hokage sighed, "The most important thing for a ninja is teamwork. All of you made it into becoming ninjas because you cooperated with your teammates. If this continues on, then you will fail,"

Kiba furrowed his eyebrows, "Whatever."

Tsubasa continued on absently, "Not like I'm meeting him again, I'm just glad the mission is over,"

Neji kept quiet, but he was the only one who noticed how Godaime's eyes suddenly sparkled—evilly—and he felt cold sweats running down his forehead.

"Very well, you may leave," Tsunade said, somehow happily.

xxx

Tsubasa hugged her squirming cat to her chest, "You're leaving?"

Fumie looked at her and smiled, "I just received an S-rank mission,"

"How long will you be going?" Sho asked while Tsubasa was trying to keep her cat calm, "Yue-chan!" she shouted when the gray cat jumped off her arms and run towards the field, chasing a butterfly.

They were at their usual training spot; at a clearing field, just a bit outside of Konoha village, resting after their training and enjoying their lunch together.

"Oh for the love of—" Tsubasa laughed and looked at her teacher, "Yeah, how long will you be gone?"

Fumie looked up from her tea, "Not sure," her forehead scrunched up, deep in thinking, "the longest could be a month,"

Kenji wolf-whistled, "That's long," Then he smiled to himself, "that means no training for a month," he nodded, "Sweet…"

Fumie laughed, "Nice try, but you guys will have to train with other teachers,"

Tsubasa blinked, "I never heard of that," she said as Yue ran back towards her, the dead butterfly in her mouth.

Tsubasa scolded her cat lightly and Fumie smiled disgustingly when she saw Yue crunching on the butterfly. "The Hokage wanted all of the young ninja to continue training, even without their teachers around,"

"This doesn't have anything to do with the fact that we might face a war soon, does it?" Sho asked worriedly, being the pacifist in the group.

Fumie nodded softly, tucking a strand of black hair behind her ear, "All of you will be separated and assigned to your new groups tomorrow after I leave,"

Kenji sighed, upset that he won't be having break but after a second he lightened up, "Hey, I might meet a new girl!"

Fumie rolled her eyes, "Take it easy Kenji, you might get in trouble one day," she said, warning the playboy shinobi.

Tsubasa sighed as she watch Yue running around the field again, "I just hope I won't get that team…"

Xxx

Tsubasa and her teammates, Kenji and Sho met in front of their usual café shop the next day after finding out which teams they were assigned to.

The three of them had frustrated, sad and angry look on their faces.

The frustrated one was Kenji. He was assigned to Gai's team. His first day made him wanted to puke, from Gai's and Lee's words of encouragement. And he thought he's blind now, with all the nice-guy pose's brightly white teeth. But the girl in the team, Tenten was the kind of girl he's looking for…right now. But there was Neji, standing in between him and Tenten.

He both like and hate the team, though the hate was a bit more than the liking.

The sad one was Sho, for he was assigned to Asuma's group. His first day went normally, until the girl member, Ino started losing her temper—he heard that it was in her daily timetable. Being the pacifist, he tried to stop her—the girl was screaming at everything, even to the small rock that was quite far away from them—and gotten a piece of her tantrum.

He thought he's beginning to hate it.

The last one, the angry one was of course—the only last person in the team—Tsubasa. She was assigned to THAT team—Kurenai's team. She should be happy, she wasn't the only girl in the team, she got Hinata, and that Kurenai is Fumie's friend, so they knew each other.

But there was—him. Inuzuka Kiba.

Tsubasa doesn't need more reasons, she HATED her new team.

The three of them looked at each other, smiling sadly. "You guys…" they said in unison, their eyes watering comically and uncharacteristically.

"One month," Kenji said, he wondered if he'll be able to ask Tenten out on a date, what's with Neji bugging in the way.

"Separated," Sho continued, deep in thought to try finding a way to make Ino less monster and more humanly.

Tsubasa gritted her teeth, "Oh hell" she cursed, trying to block the images of her and the new team together.

_One month together…huh, maybe lesser…_

_But then again..._

She doesn't think she can make it by then; she might die from too much tension or commit suicide…

...probably after the first hour on the first day.

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okay, i know i should've posted the mission, and i did write about the mission--two different missions actually--but i find them dark and boring--and totally unrelated to the story--and i want the story to be light and entertaining..so i cancel it out.

besides i have other things in mind anyway for the story. but somehow the plot bunnies are attacking, so i'm a bit slow in updating. anyway, if anyone have ideas to put in the story, don't be shy and let me know. and if you have ideas how to make the arguments more heated up, please tell me too.

anyway..Have a happy new year ya'll!

Reviews please!


	4. Everybody Let's Kungfu Fighting!

Updated! Phew! Hi guys! Long time no see…haha. School started already, and being the senior in the school, there's so many things to do like taking care of the art club, and the creative writing, and the house's marching, and the class...(paused, stare at readers)

...ahem,hehe sorry!Anyway enough of me talking!

Again, million thanks to those who reviewed!

**Joekool**- hey, I never thought of it that way…you're absolutely correct! Haha. Humans CAN get along (if they'd stop killing each other first…)

**Moonlight Star Phoenix**-I'm evil to Tsubasa? Gasp! In what ways I'm evil towards her! Good then! Hahaha…

**Twisted irony**- You are just like your name, TWISTED. Hahah, jk jk. Happy going back to asrama sista!

Okay…on with the story!

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**Cat and Dog**

Chapter 3

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"Akamaru, GO!" Kiba shouted.

Tsubasa narrowed her eyes as she watched the giant dog flew towards her. She closed her eyes and performed her Body Flicker Jutsu, disappeared from where she stood and reappearing right behind Kiba.

"Sukiyari!" she shouted and pulled out a kunai, and aiming it at Kiba's neck.

Kiba turned around and stopped her kunai in mid air with his own, "You play dirty,"

"That's not dirty," she gritted her teeth as she pushed harder. "Yue-chan!"

The cat jumped and lunged towards them.

Tsubasa pushed herself off him and landed a few feet away from Kiba. She raised her arm to her side and Yue landed on it. Tsubasa did hand signals with her other hand and smoke started appearing on her arm where Yue had landed.

Kiba narrowed his eyes, _what trick was that?_ The smoke was surrounding her, he doesn't even know where her real location was.

Kiba kept quiet, readying himself for her attack. The smoke was disappearing, and he could see her silhouette. Then she jumped towards him.

Tsubasa lunged towards her opponent, thrusting out her right arm where Yue had landed, "Cat's Claws!" she shouted and aimed her arm at Kiba.

He dodged the attack, studying the new weapon on her arm. Her cat had disappeared, and somehow her arm was connected with four sharp metal claws.

Tsubasa did a back flip right over Kiba's head and tapped her other arm with her clawed one. Four more claws appeared on her other arm and she lunged towards him again.

Damn that cat, she's using her own jutsu. Kiba looked around, "Akamaru!"

The dog barked and appeared beside him. "Beast Bunshin no Jutsu!" Two Kibas appeared standing beside each other. "Let's go!" he shouted and ran towards Tsubasa.

"Gatsuuga!"

Tsubasa saw two tornados-like moving towards her. She closed her eyes again and disappeared.

Kiba's and Akamaru's Gatsuuga missed her and they stop themselves and looked around. Kiba sniffed for Tsubasa's scent and finally found her standing on a tree's branch.

"Scared to come down?" he said, grinning.

"Hah! You wish!" Tsubasa placed her arms across each other in front of her and jumped off the tree. She was running towards him at full speed.

She's fast, Kiba bit his lips, his eyes moving hurriedly to find her. "Ouch!" he felt her sharp claw hit his arm. She disappeared again. One more hit on his knee. Another hit, and another.

Kiba couldn't take it anymore. He looked over and saw that Akamaru was being attack too, until he finally let go of the Beast Bunshin no Jutsu and reappeared as his dog version again.

_Damn you_, he thought and focused his thought. Another hit, another one, and another.

Blood was pouring from his body from the slashes that she made, but Kiba didn't care, he was deep in thought, focusing on her rhythm of attacks.

"There!" Kiba shouted and grabbed for the air. His arms caught Tsubasa's foot while she was running.

Tsubasa's eyes widened. No one had ever caught her Flash Steps before.

"Found you!" Kiba smirked, pulled her using her foot and spun her around. After a while he finally let go of Tsubasa's foot and she flew over the ground until she finally hit a tree trunk and fell into a pond under it.

Kiba panted, still dizzy from the spinning and fell to the ground.

"Game over!" he heard Kurenai shouted and the next second she appeared beside him.

"You okay Kiba?" the jounin asked. Kiba raised his shaken hand up and showed a thumb up. He grinned and Kurenai shook her head, smiling.

"Kurenai-sensei! She can't swim!" they heard Hinata shouted from over where Tsubasa had fallen.

Kiba's eyes widened, what? Why he was feeling worried for her, he didn't know. Maybe he wasn't thinking straight, with the dizzy feeling in his head.

He wanted to stand up, but Kurenai pushed him down, "rest," she said and disappeared in a poof.

"Akamaru?" Kiba called out and heard his dog barked in reply. The said dog walked towards it's owner and licked him. Kiba studied his dog.

No scratch, no wound. "Hey, you're okay," he laughed sourly. Akamaru barked.

Kiba tried to sit up, his body felt sore, with the number of slashes on it. He looked over one arm which had around three slashes. It was bleeding, but the wounds weren't deep.

Akamaru helped him sit up and let his master leaned against his body. Kiba checked himself. Yes, there were slashes on him, and they were bleeding, but the cuts weren't as deep as he thought.

She didn't try to cut me fully? Kiba thought as he watched his teammates pulled out the Maneki girl. She was soaked to the bone, her black cat outfit sticking to her flesh, strands of her hair came out from its bun and framed her face, and she was panting hard for air.

Shino and Hinata helped carry Tsubasa towards Kiba, Kurenai holding her cat.

They placed Tsubasa beside him and he can hear her irregular breathing. She had no wounds on her body, unlike him, but she was shivering.

"I hope both of you are satisfied now," Kurenai smirked. "The reason I let the two of you fight is so that all of your anger towards each other will be pulled out. Now that that's complete, will you finally able to work with each other?"

Kiba and Tsubasa looked at their teacher. Tsubasa nodded and held out her arms, her mouth moving, but no sound came out since she was still panting hard.

Kurenai understood and handed Tsubasa her cat.

Kiba watched the soaked girl beside him, examining her pet carefully, looking for any wounds. The cat was squirming weakly in her arms.

After noticing there were no wounds, Tsubasa hugged the cat closed to her chest, running her hand through its wet fur and looking somewhat relieved.

_She really loved her cat huh_, Kiba thought as he looked at Akamaru behind him. He smiled at the dog. He was glad that his dog wasn't hurt too.

"So Kiba was the winner," Shino said. Hinata smiled at the of them, "You both were great,"

Kiba smiled weakly, "Thanks," so he had won the cat and dog fight.

Then his eyes caught Tsubasa trying to stand up, though she was still swaying.

"Sit down, you're still weak," Kurenai told her and held her shoulders when she was almost falling.

"No," Tsubasa was still panting. "Yue-chan took the hit for me, when we hit the tree trunk, I-I need to check her,"

"She was the metal claws, wasn't she?" Kurenai asked, letting go of Tsubasa.

The Maneki girl nodded. "Can I be excuse?"

Kurenai nodded and Tsubasa began walking away. Then suddenly she stopped and turned her head around, "Congratulation," she said to Kiba and continued walking.

Hinata sat beside Kiba and began checking his wounds and trying to heal them.

"These wounds aren't deep at all. They're merely scratches," Hinata said after a while.

"What?" Kiba asked surprised.

Hinata pulled up his arm and pushed his sleeve away so they could see his skin. "See?" the Hyuuga pointed to the wounds.

Kiba looked at his bloodied arm. The bleeding had stopped and he could see the gashes clearly. "Does it hurt?" Hinata asked.

"…not really,"

"Akamaru looks fine too," Shino said, looking at his dog. "I saw him being attack, but he has no wounds at all,"

Akamaru barked in reply. Kiba told them, "He said he's not hurt,"

Kurenai blinked and smiled, "Well how about that, she didn't really hit you Kiba,"

What was that supposed to mean? That she could've won the match easily if she cut him?

Does that mean that he didn't really win?

Kiba bit his lips.

Before he was proud that he had won the match, it showed to him that dogs are better than cats.

But now he felt like a loser. She wasn't being totally serious on the whole match.

He didn't win the match fairly…

…no, he won the match because…

….she was taking pity on him.

"Dammit!", Kiba punched the ground in his anger.

xxx

Yue meowed at her owner. Tsubasa kept walking, holding her cat firmly in her hands.

"What do you mean I wasn't being serious?" the Maneki asked. "I hit him good,"

The cat meowed in disagreement.

"No, I won't take a rematch. He won it," she said, feeling disappointed at herself for losing. Another rematch would end up in the same way again. She doesn't want to be beaten twice.

It hurt her pride as a Cat clan member that she had lost. And that a member Inuzuka had won hurt her pride even more.

_It doesn't really matter…I don't care. It was just a stupid match._

Yue meowed again, this time a bit angrily.

Tsubasa sighed, "okay okay, fine! I admit I didn't hit him seriously. Are you happy?" she asked the cat and smiled softly. "I didn't know which was who. I can't injure an animal…you know that…"

And it was true. The reason she didn't cut him good wasn't because she couldn't. She had a lot of openings and opportunities, but it was when she was running quickly in her Flash Steps, she couldn't tell which of the two Kibas was Akamaru.

And it was in her oath—as a person who dreams on becoming a vet soon and as an animal lover—that she will never hit or hurt an animal.

Even if it was a dog…her natural enemy.

* * *

Okay, review please! This would probably be the last time I update my stories (I'll try to make it during Chinese New Year though.) In the mean time, tell me what you think ok!

Oh, and if you'd like, read my Soba ni Iru Kara story too! It's a collection of drabbles about the pairings in Naruto. Um, yeah that's all.

Ja ne!


	5. When There's Too Much Rage

before the story starts...i have some things i want to say...

I'M SORRRYYYYY!!! bows bows bows if there are those who waited for this fic to continue, i'm really really sorry it took sooo long for me to update (more than a year actually)

last year i was busy with my last year of high school and the o-levels examinations. and then, earlier this year, i kinda lost interest in naruto (because there's no kiba!! TT) and became a prince of tennis/tenimyu freakfan. but i still kept on thinking about this story and i still read naruto, except i felt no inspiration to write/post. (because there's no KIBA!!! ;; )

then...a MIRACLE! the latest chapter of naruto manga had KIBA!! TEAM 8!! and i was like, "FINALLY!!" inspiration level: 110 and rising lol. and tadaaa...now i'm here.

so again i'm really sorry i took so long to update!! I'm really sorry!!!

thank you so much to those who had reviewed! i love you guys!!

**Lunarangel's Dark Flame:** hm, talk more about the match? i hope this chapter helps!

**Queenoftheused:** i'm glad you like it! hope you'll continue reading!

**joekool:** i've updated!

**Mina the Mischevious: **updated! sorry it took so long!

**Element Girls**: glad you like it! i have a friend who is obsessed with cats too! a vet? that's soo cool!

**Frogbuddy**: er...sorry that you didn't like the name. but glad you like the story.

**PinkPisces:** gasps!!! you know what 'maneki tsubasa' means?! i'm soo happy! i wanted it to be a secret and have people wonders if it has any meaning. and you found out! ahh so happy!

**superfreak9201**: updated!

**stooopidblackkitty13: **i'm glad you like it! hope you'll still read!

okay, now on to the story!

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**Cat and Dog**

Chapter 4

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"Tsubasa,"

The young Maneki turned. An old man was standing in front of her.

"Arai-sama," she said and bowed to the old man. He was the family's advisor for Maneki's head of clan.

"Your brother wishes to speak to you,"

Tsubasa blinked. Oniisama wanted to see her? Why?

"Now?" she asked, still surprised.

The man nodded.

Tsubasa stood up, and took a deep breath. "H-hai."

xxx

To say Kiba was in a bad mood, was an understatement of the year.

He was in a **BAD** mood. Ever since he found out that he won the little 'battle' he had with the cat out of pity, he was frowning, glaring, shouting and even was barking at everyone that crossed his way.

It had actually been a week after their last encounter. For some unknown reason, Tsubasa did not show up to any of their trainings and she did not bother to inform any of her new team why.

For one thing, it was good to Kiba, it meant that he didn't have to face a Maneki, but for another, he really wanted to get it straight with her.

He was an Inuzuka for god's sake. He was not going to accept his win without a fair fight.

His teammates knew there was nothing they could do to return Kiba's mood. They were actually afraid of the dog master for once.

Yes, even Shino.

To say Kiba had changed, he did not really. He was still the same old Kiba. He was still the hyper, fiery, brave, troublemaking shinobi that he was.

But currently, the fact that a Maneki was standing closer to him than he had imagined, was clouding his head so much, he forgot to act like himself.

And so, Kurenai finally decided she had enough. After seven days, she sent Kiba home, right during his training. She wanted him to solve his problem soon and clear his head.

Kiba wanted to object of course, but after much glaring from his teacher, (to have someone with red irises to stare at you for a long time is quite scary actually) and a bite from Akamaru, Kiba gave up and obeyed.

Inuzuka Kiba took a deep breath as he walked down the road, hands in his pockets. He sighed.

Even his own dog was telling him to clear his head.

Kiba sighed. Akamaru was right. He needed to relax. Just because a Maneki came into his life, he was not going to lose his head. No way.

No freaking way.

Good, so he's starting to think clearly now. Good.

And just when Kiba thought he was handling it, Akamaru barked.

"What?" Kiba turned to face his giant dog. His eyes roamed around until he spotted what—no, _who_—Akamaru was telling him.

Kiba's eyes narrowed, it was _her_.

xxx

"Come on Neji! Let's enjoy a delicious, mouth watering, colourful, sweet, melting moments—"

Tenten sighed. "Yes Lee, we know what ice-cream is."

Lee stared back at her. "I know you know what it is, but I'm not sure that Neji does," he whispered.

Neji glared, "I heard that." He turned on his heels, "I'm going home."

"WHAT?!" Lee shouted, gaining attention from everyone around. He grabbed the jounin's arms.

"No, we are here as a group and we shall all savour the taste of melting ice creams that will cool your lips but warm your heart and—and—" Lee stopped when he felt Neji was getting tensed.

Lee let go of his grip on Neji. He knew what it meant. Neji was getting annoyed. And the last time he got Neji annoyed, he ended up with a frozen beef on his face.

Tenten realized it too. "Ne-Neji! Calm yourself. It's just ice-cream, you don't have to—"

"It's them," Neji suddenly said, his eyes narrowed.

Tenten and Lee blinked. "Them? Who are them?" They looked up to see who Neji was looking at and all they saw was Kiba standing quite a few feet away from them.

"Oi, Kiba!!" Lee started calling out the dog master's name, waving his arm excitedly.

"Oh? He's not listening to me," Lee frowned. He looked at Tenten, "ne, who's that girl?" Lee pointed to a girl Kiba just bumped into.

Neji narrowed his eyes even more.

xxx

Tsubasa knew somehow something's bad was going to happen to her.

She didn't expect it to be _him_.

She was taking a walk around town that day, inhaling the fresh air and trying to clear up her clogged mind. The talk she had with her brother had left her in confusion.

And in her deep thinking, _he_ had to come out of nowhere, and bumped into her.

Purposely.

Xxx

Kiba swore it wasn't on purpose. Really!

All he wanted was to walk past her and glared at her, hoping to get her attention, provoked her and get their problem settled. That was all.

But he was so focused on walking past her, so focused on glaring at her with all his strength, that he didn't even realize there was a small rock in front of him.

And he tripped.

And bumped into her. Oh well.

Xxx

Neji knew it meant trouble.

From the moment he saw Kiba and Tsubasa standing across each other, he knew the moment they passed each other, something bad was going to happen.

And he was right.

"Tenten, call any sensei you can find and ask them to come here quickly," Neji said towards his weapon expert teammate.

"Lee, come along with me," Neji added, looking at his other teammate.

Tenten and Lee looked at each other before turning towards Neji. "Why?" they asked in unison.

Neji sighed. "Because there's a Maneki and an Inuzuka standing less than a foot between each other,"

Lee's and Tenten's eyes widen. "Say no more."

xxx

"What was that for?" Tsubasa asked rather coldly. What was his problem? Was it his habit to hit people on the road for no apparent reason?

"You owe me a match," Kiba answered.

Tsubasa's eyes narrowed. "What match? You won the last one." Then she smirked. "Oh, I see, you want to beat me again so you can show off to your clan right,"

"You lost on purpose," Kiba said rather calmly, trying to control himself.

Tsubasa kept quiet and then she smirked, "If you're saying I won that match, then just accept your loss," she said and walked past him.

At least she tried to.

Kiba pulled her hand. "We're getting this done, now. Or are you scared that you might lose for real?"

Tsubasa narrowed her eyes. "Are you challenging me here, Inuzuka?"

"Unless you're a chicken,"

The cat mistress had enough. She was having a rough week anyway with her brother's sudden restraining order from doing her training with her team and the stupid dog here had to ruin the one day where she get to spend her day outside and calling her a coward.

Tsubasa smirked, pulled his grip off her hand and in one quick motion, she squatted with one leg out and kicked Kiba's shin.

Kiba—who did not expect her to attack him so soon—lost his balance and fell down.

"hah!" Tsubasa grinned triumphantly for being able to make the hound master fall on his behind.

Kiba stood up and glared at the arrogant girl in front of him. Akamaru was barking at him, but Kiba chose to ignore his dog.

He lunged towards her, his arm ready for a punch. Tsubasa crossed her arms in front of her, defending herself.

They didn't care if they were in public. They didn't care if people were watching. They didn't give a damn that no one tried to stop them.

It was good that way. Now they can finish was what left unfinished and find out which one of them was better.

"Stop!"

Kiba and Tsubasa paused. No, they were forced to stop out of their wills by two people who had blocked and held them down.

"Oi, Lee, get off! Let me finish this!" Kiba was shouting at the green-spandex user. Lee shook his head, "Get yourself together Kiba!"

Tsubasa on the other hand was blocked by Neji. "I thought you don't like to interfere with other people's business, senpai?"

"Don't be childish," was all Neji replied, gripping tight on her arms.

"Well, he started it, tell it to him!" Tsubasa shouted, pointing to Kiba who was trying to fight off Lee's grips.

"After she began it!" Kiba replied. Akamaru barked at him, but he ignored the dog again.

"You're the—" Tsubasa was cut off when someone else appeared and shouted at them.

"Enough both of you!" the fifth Hokage appeared, Tenten trailing behind her.

Neji narrowed his eyes; he didn't want the Hokage to face this. God knows what she will do towards the two fiery ninjas.

Noticing it, Tenten apologized. "Sorry Neji, she was the closest I could find…and you did say quickly…"

"Tsunade-sama, don't you see it? Why can't you put me is some other group?" Tsubasa asked, looking straight at the Fifth.

"I can't stand him! I don't want to stand anywhere near him—"

"You think I want to? You're a horrible—"

"Tsubasa"

"Kiba!"

The fighting duo stopped when they heard two other voices calling their names.

Kiba turned his head and saw his sister standing behind. "Neechan,"

Tsubasa on the other end, felt her legs turning into jelly, she knew to whom the voice belong to, "Niisama"

Inuzuka Hana and Maneki Tsuno stood behind their siblings across each other.

The older Inuzuka and Maneki looked at each other and did a slight bow, creating confusion from their siblings and the people around.

"Inuzuka Hana, Maneki Tsuno, I hope this will be the last ruckus your siblings will be making. Make sure that it is," Tsunade spoke sternly.

The older siblings of the two families bowed, understood.

"Now the two of you, report to my office tomorrow morning. We will discuss your punishment," the Hokage stared at the two chuunins. "Understood?!"

There was a pause, before a grunt and a sigh was heard. "Hai, Hokage-sama,"

Kiba and Tsubasa frowned as Neji and Lee released them and followed their siblings back home.

Great, now they have to spend doing their punishment together.

* * *

how was it? hope you guys like it! i think i lost my touch (if i had one anyway) after leaving the world of fanfictions and studying the whole year (yes, i'm a dork but it paid off! .) haha. anyway, please reviews!

and just to inform. i will be changing my name to 'scorpioslayer'. no more 'henohenomoheji'. the reason is because 'scorpioslayer' is the name i use everywhere mostly, so i want it to be the same here in too.

okay then, click the review button! go!


	6. The Punishment

**Cat and Dog **

Chapter 5

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The next day, early in the morning, the two of them were already waiting outside the Hokage's office.

Their eyes met for a second when they both reached the office, and they broke the connection and stood as far as they could from each other.

This time they had arrived without their pets.

There was silence between them, both not wanting to open their mouths to talk to the other, still sore from what had happened before.

Shizune appeared from the Hokage's office and saw the two chuunins waiting outside. They were quiet but she could feel the tense atmosphere between them.

"Godaime-sama will see the two of you now," Shizune informed to the two chuunins.

Kiba and Tsubasa nodded at the same time and headed towards the door. They stopped when they saw that both of them were getting in at the same time.

Tsubasa glared at him,_ what about ladies first?_

Kiba glared in return, _You__ want me to give up to you huh?_

Shizune could only chuckle to herself when she saw what was happening. She watched Tsubasa pushed Kiba and walked into the office first, Kiba frowning as he followed her from behind.

"Close the door," the Hokage spoke. Shizune nodded her head and did as told, leaving the two teenagers with the Hokage.

"Sit,"Tsunade began, and she watched the two chuunins followed her order quietly, sitting beside each other, but looking at opposite directions.

Tsunade rubbed her temples as she spoke. "I want to tell you a story. There were these boy and girl," she started.

"They have nothing against each other, never had offended the other. But by nature, they are enemies," Tsunade kept talking.

"They tried to change it, changed they way the people view about them, but they couldn't. No one could accept it. Especially their clans. And they had to obey their elders rule and stayed far away from each other."

Kiba was the first to interrupt. "So? What about it?" he started. "It's better for them to stay away, anyway."

Tsubasa added. "Are you referring to us, Tsunade-sama?" she asked and furrowed her eyebrows. "Because if you were, we're not like them."She said and glared at Kiba, who returned the glare back.

Tsunade kept quiet and didn't reply their questions. Instead she stood up and walked towards where the four portraits of Hokages were hanged.

Kiba and Tsubasa turned to face her and saw the Godaime pointing to the Third's picture.

"A lot had changed after the Third's passed away," she started and turned to face them. "It's not safe here anymore, and you know that."

The two chuunins kept quiet. They knew what she was talking about.

"Right now," Tsunade said and walked towards them. "What this village needs is unity,"she said, sitting on the edge of her desk, facing them.

"Differences should be put aside, whether it's by nature or not." Tsunade continued. "Because right now, unity is needed especially in this village, to pull through all the troubles we've been."

Tsunade looked at them. "Do you understand that?"

"Hai," the two of them said at the same time.

Tsunade nodded her head and patted the two of them on the shoulders.

"Aren't the new generations the ones who like to rebel what the elders say to them?" she asked smiling. "Try becoming friends, it will help solve a lot of problems,"

Tsubasa looked at the hand on her shoulder and her eyes met Kiba's. They looked away a second later and watched the Hokage smiled at them.

"That's all then," she said standing up and walked towards her chair and sat down. "You can go,"

Tsubasa blinked. _Eh, I thought there'__s punishment?_ "R-really?"

Tsunade nodded her head. "Yes, is there anything else?"

The cat mistress was about to open her mouth and asked about the punishment when Kiba suddenly stood up. "Thank you, Hokage-sama," he said and started walking out the door.

Tsubasa looked at his retreating back and turned to look at the Hokage who was looking at her confusedly.

_She's not giving us any punishments?_

"Is there anything else, Tsubasa?"

Tsubasa kept quiet. She knew the reason Kiba left. He thought that the Hokage had forgotten about the punishment, and left without bringing up the topic, so she wouldn't remember about it.

_I don't want to do a punishment with him!_

Tsubasa shook her head. "Iie, there's nothing else." She lied.

Xxx

When Tsubasa reached the training grounds later that day, Kiba was already there with his other teammates and Akamaru, who looked angry towards its master.

"Hello," Hinata greeted her. Tsubasa replied her with a smile.

"Is your cat still not well?" Hinata asked her. "I haven't seen her for a week,"

It was true that Tsubasa hasn't been bringing her cat along with her for the past week. _It'll stay that way for a few more days..._

Tsubasa shook her head, "Iie, Yue-chan is fine," she smiled.

Hinata was about to ask more but Kurenai-sensei appeared and began instructing them on their training menu for that day.

Kurenai had split them into two groups. Tsubasa was partnered with Shino, and Kiba was partnered with Hinata; for the obvious reason.

Even during their trainings, away from each other, Kiba and Tsubasa still felt anger towards each other. How could they not?

They haven't resolved anything.

"Maneki-san," Shino spoke. Tsubasa looked up to face the bug user. "You can call me Tsubasa," she said.

Shino nodded his head, "Please concentrate on the training,"

Tsubasa narrowed her eyes. "It's not like I don't want to. I could smell him a mile away, and that's not a good thing,"

Unfortunately, Kiba who was still angry towards Tsubasa, overheard their conversation.

"What's that supposed to mean?!" he asked.

Tsubasa took one look at him and rolled her eyes. "Nothing," she said and jumped on a tree. "Come on Shino-san," she continued, eyes focused on the training at hand.

Kiba gritted his teeth in return. How dare she ignore him?! Because of her, he was feeling so much anger! Because of her, Akamaru wasn't talking to him! Because of her--

Ugh!! He wanted so much to punch that egoistic face of hers!

Kiba turned his head and saw that Kurenai had left them. He smirked and with a poof he appeared on the tree branch beside Tsubasa.

She glared at him. "What?"

"You owe me a match!" Kiba started.

Shino and Hinata watched them from below. They knew they should stop the two of them from fighting, but they were smart to let them resolve this on their own.

"I don't owe you anything dogbreath," Tsubasa said and jumped off the tree. "Come on Shino-san," she called out.

"Oi!" Kiba followed her from behind. "You heard what Tsunade-sama said. Let's solve this," he said, and showed her a fist.

Tsubasa smirked. "You'd use a fist against a girl?"

"You're no girl," he said.

_That does it!_ Tsubasa narrowed her eyes. She walked towards Kiba and pulled his collar. "Don't mess with me Inuzuka!"

"I was about to say the same!!" Kiba replied, leaning towards her, his dark eyes glaring right through her golden ones.

She pulled his collar closer towards her, glaring straight into his eyes, challenging him. "You're really gonna be sorry you asked for this," she started.

"Let's see who will be sorry," Kiba said in return, fists readily clenched. Tsubasa did the same.

A poof was heard before the two of them could begin their fight. Kurenai appeared in front of them, crossing her arms.

"I left you guys for a few minutes, and you're both ready to kill each other again," she started. Then she turned to face Shino and Hinata.

"And why didn't you stop them?"

Hinata bowed, apologizing while Shino spoke. "They would not listen to us anyway,"

Kurenai turned to face the two chuunins who were head to head in anger. "Return to your training partners now," she ordered.

Kiba and Tsubasa both frowned and released each other's collars. They took one last glare at each other and turned around to walk the opposite sites...

And were pulled back together again.

"What the--?" Kiba started, surprised. He turned to look and saw that Tsubasa looked just as surprised as him.

_What the hell?_

Tsubasa narrowed her eyes. She had a feeling something fishy was going around.

Once again she turned around and tried to walk away from Kiba

And again she was pulled back towards him. The two of them looked at each other, shocked.

"What now?" Kurenai began. "Separate now!"

Kiba and Tsubasa tried again, turned and walked the opposite site and then they felt it.

There was a force, a strong force pulling them back together. And before they could react, they were already thrown towards each other, their shoulders meeting.

Tsubasa glared at Kiba and placed her hands on his shoulder and tried to push him off from 'sticking' to her.

Kiba, at the same time, tried to pull himself away too.

But it was like there was a super, strong glue between their shoulders, keeping the two of them together.

"What's going on?" Kurenai asked. Shino and Hinata who witnessed the strange situation walked closer towards them, curious.

Tsubasa used all her might to push Kiba away but it was useless. Exasperated, she turned and yelled at him. "What did you do?!!"

"I did nothing!!" Kiba yelled at the same time. "Is this some kind of a joke?!" he asked and tried to push her away from him.

Again, unsuccessful.

Tired, he turned to Shino. "Pull me!" he ordered. Shino nodded his head. Hinata too nodded her head and went towards Tsubasa just as Shino went towards Kiba.

They began pulling each other apart, but no matter how much energy they put to pull them apart, Kiba and Tsubasa were pulled back together by the unknown force again.

After many attempts to get each other away, the chuunins had grown tired.

Kurenai looked at the two chuunins stuck at the shoulders, eyebrows furrowed.

"Hinata," she began.

Hinata looked up, "Hai?"

"Can you try and see if there is any chakra between Kiba and Tsubasa?" Kurenai asked.

Hinata looked confused but did as she was told. She focused on Kiba's and Tsubasa's connecting shoulders and gasped.

"What?!" Kiba asked, curious.

"There-There's a strong chakra hold there..." Hinata told them.

"WHAT?!" both Kiba and Tsubasa shouted at the same time. They turned to look at each other and glared.

"WHAT DID YOU DO?!" they asked each other.

"I DID NOTHING!" they both replied at the same time.

Kurenai furrowed her eyebrows. _This is weird...none of them could conjure this on their own...and they wouldn't too...unless..._

"How do you like it?" a voice said.

All of them turned and saw the Hokage sitting on a tree branch, looking at them, smiling.

"Hokage-sama!" Tsubasa started. "Do you have anything to do with this?!"

Kiba thought about it and his eyes widened. _Of course!_

He remembered the Hokage patting them both on the shoulders.

"You--You put this, this thing!!" Kiba said, pointing to the Hokage.

Tsunade nodded her head as she jumped from the tree and looked at the two chuunins.

"It's the legendary chakra bind," she told them.

Tsubasa narrowed her eyes. "It's not funny, take it off."

Tsunade smirked. "You think I would let you get away without a punishment?"

There was silence between them and then both Kiba's and Tsubasa's eyes widened.

Tsunade nodded. "This is your punishment." She told them.

"This is the only way to make you understand each other."

Tsubasa and Kiba glared at each other.

Tsubasa sighed. "What do we do?" she asked. "How to get us separated?"

"Saa..." Tsunade said, shrugging. She tossed something towards them and Kiba caught it.

"Figure it out yourself," Tsunade said, smirking before disappearing with a poof.

Kiba looked at the thing Tsunade had thrown at him. He held the thing up high for all of them to see.

It was a long woven bamboo cylinder with holes in both ends of the cylinder, making it looked like a tunnel.

"What the heck is this?" Kiba asked.

Tsubasa turned to look and it didn't take her long to know what it was.

"A finger trap." She answered. _Why would the Hokage give us a finger trap?_

* * *

review please! it makes my day!


	7. A Thing or Two about Finger Trap

**Cat and Dog**

Chapter 6

-

-

"A _what_?" Kiba asked, looking at the 'thing' in his hands curiously.

Tsubasa rolled her eyes and took the finger trap from Kiba. "How stupid are you? This is a finger trap," she said.

"You put two fingers in here and you can't get it out," she said.

"R-really?" Hinata asked, surprised.

Tsubasa shrugged. "I don't know. It needs some tricks," she said and clenched the finger trap.

"What the heck does this thing has anything to do with this?" she asked, looking at hers and Kiba's 'glued' shoulders.

"In anyway," Kurenai said, hiding the amused smile from her team, "You guys are dismissed for today,"

Kiba's and Tsubasa's eyes widened. "Ehh! Wait a minute!!" Kiba called out.

"Ugh…hello? Help here?" Tsubasa said, pointing to her shoulder.

Kurenai looked at them and smiled, rather evilly. "You two got into this mess, you clean it up."

"But there's nothing to clean!!" Kiba said exasperatedly.

"She wasn't talking literally idiot," Tsubasa rolled her eyes. She ignored the glare Kiba gave and looked at the jounin.

"We can't stay like this forever," she tried to get their attention.

Kurenai nodded her head. "True." She said and looked thoughtful, like she was thinking of a solution.

Tsubasa bit her lips, hoping that the teacher would find one.

Then Kurenai shrugged and smiled. "Then you guys better think of a way out fast" she said. She looked like she was enjoying tormenting them.

Tsubasa's eyes widened. "B-but!!"

Kurenai turned to Hinata and Shino. "Now, this is an order. I don't want any of you to help them."

"WHAT?!!" Kiba called out. "Oh come on! We're a TEAM!"

Kurenai ignored her student. "This is a punishment from Hokage-sama and I bet she's doing this so they can learn to cooperate."

"So if any of us," Kurenai paused, "if anyone helps, it won't help them at all." She said. "Understood?"

Shino nodded his head. Hinata looked guilty but nodded her head in the end.

Then Kurenai disappeared and Shino turned on his heels and started walking away.

"Oi SHINO!!" Kiba called out but Shino ignored him. Then Kiba turned to Hinata. "Hinata…"

Hinata bowed her head. "Gomen ne Kiba-kun, Tsubasa-chan," she said.

She looked up and looked at the two of them. "I-I really want you guys to be friends," she said, bowed again, turned around and started walking away too.

"HINATA!!" Kiba called out but Hinata didn't turn back. He watched Shino waited for Hinata and both of them left back to the village.

"Kuso!" Kiba shouted, scuffing the ground. Then his eyes widened and he turned around. "Akamaru!"

Kiba blinked when he couldn't find his dog anywhere near him. He tried to sense his dog and felt that Akamaru was further away from where he was.

"Your dog has already left," Tsubasa said, looking at the finger trap in her hand uninterestedly.

"What?"

"That way," Tsubasa pointed to the training ground's other exit. "He left while you were calling for your teammates,"

"Che," Kiba said. "I gotta find him," he said to himself and began walking towards the exit.

He paused when he felt the extra weight on him and saw that he had dragged Tsubasa along as he walk. She looked at him annoyed.

_Oh right…we're stuck._

"Who said I want to go find your dog?" Tsubasa began.

"_I _want to," Kiba emphasized. "You don't have to if you don't want."

"Then," Tsubasa said, eyes narrowed. "Make us unstuck first."

Kiba narrowed his eyes at her. "Are you saying this is my fault?"

"Well you started it,"

Kiba gritted his teeth. "You were the cause,"

Tsubasa looked at him dirtily. She was about to retort something back at Kiba but paused. Then she shook her head.

"Fighting with you isn't going to solve anything,"

Kiba smirked. "If only you realized that sooner."

Tsubasa gave him a dirty look again. "You're an ass."

"Same goes to you." Kiba said. "Now be a smart ass and follow me find Akamaru."

Kiba tried to walk again but felt the weight stopping him. He turned and saw Tsubasa looking at him, arms crossed.

"Who died and made you king?" she asked. "I don't have to follow your orders." She rolled her eyes. "I don't want to follow you."

"Like hell I want you to!" Kiba shouted. "But I gotta find Akamaru!"

"He's a dog," Tsubasa said, "He'll find his way home."

"That's not it!" Kiba shouted.

Tsubasa looked at him, eyebrows furrowed curiously when she saw the emotion that played on Kiba's face.

_Was that fear?_

"In anyway," Tsubasa continued. "Do you really want to go back to the village like _this_?"

"As if this isn't horrifying enough, I don't want to become the laughing stock of the whole village."

_And not to mention Niisama will kill me._

Kiba kept quiet and after a few seconds he sighed. "Che, what do you have in mind?"

He turned to look at Tsubasa and saw her took out a necklace from inside her outfit; a silver chain with a long and thin cylinder metal pendant.

Then Kiba watched curiously as Tsubasa neared one end of the pendant to her lips and began blowing into it, like a whistle.

Except he did not hear any sound coming out from it.

Xxx

"So…" Kenji said, looking at Tsubasa and Kiba. "You guys are glued together."

There was a pause and both Kenji and Sho looked at each other, an amused look played on their faces.

"Laugh," Tsubasa said, eyes narrowed dangerously. "I dare you to laugh."

"Iie," Sho quickly shook his head. "Gomen Tsubasa,"

"Huh…" Tsubasa said and bit into her piece of chocolate-banana cake. "This isn't my fault."

"And you're blaming it on me again," Kiba started, glaring at the cat user.

"Duh," Tsubasa rolled her eyes.

"Hokage-sama is really impressive," Kenji said, slurping on his Mocha ice blend. "I've never heard of such jutsu."

"She probably made it up," Sho replied, taking a bite from his pastry. "Do you have any idea how to solve this Inuzuka?" he asked Kiba.

Kiba looked at the other three people there with him, eyes narrowed. All of them were seated in a circle, under a shaded tree. "First of all," Kiba started.

Tsubasa, Sho and Kenji looked up from their foods. "Yeah?" Kenji asked.

"First of all," Kiba repeated and took a deep breath. "WHY ARE YOU GUYS HAVING A PICNIC HERE?!!"

He pointed to the food in front of him that Sho and Kenji had brought along with them when they came, looking for Tsubasa.

"We were planning to have a picnic together," Tsubasa said and glared at Kiba. "But you had to ruin it."

"Like I said, it wasn't my fault!" Kiba replied back angrily.

"Anyway," Sho started, stopping a fight from between of them from happening. "We planned to have a picnic after the training, but since Tsubasa called us here…and we didn't expect you'd be here too…"

"He's trying to say we don't have extra food for you," Kenji laughed.

"I wasn't." Sho corrected. "You can have the cream puffs if you want."

"I don't want anything!" Kiba shouted, annoyed. "I just want to get the hell out of here!"

"Geez…" Kenji rolled his eyes. "You need to relax man,"

"I AM RELAXED!" Kiba said through gritted teeth. Honestly! Why are they lounging about here when there's an important matter to be solved!

Tsubasa rolled her eyes. "Typical of dogs…to lose temper…"

"What's that supposed to mean?!" Kiba glared at Tsubasa. "I thought you had ideas how to get us separated!" he pointed to Kenji and Sho.

"But you called in them instead! What do they know?!"

"Ouch," Kenji said. Tsubasa narrowed her eyes. "They're my friends." She started. "If _yours_ can't help us, maybe _mine_ would!"

"Leave Shino and Hinata out of this!" Kiba said defensively.

"Then leave Kenji and Sho out of this!" Tsubasa glared.

"Okay, okay…" Sho said. He neared them and pulled their heads to face him. "Enough! We'll help you guys."

Kiba and Tsubasa looked away from each other, still angry.

"Anyway," Kenji said, licking his hand from the cream puff. "I really think it's related to the finger trap," he said.

"You _think_?" Kiba gave him a glare. It was totally obvious the finger trap has something to do with their condition right now.

Kenji ignored Kiba, pushing his long brown bangs from his face and took the finger trap on the ground and into his hand.

He placed two of his fingers from different hands into the holes of the finger trap.

Tsubasa and Kiba watched Kenji tried to remove his fingers outward from the finger trap, but wasn't successful.

"In a finger trap, the more you try to pull away, the bind will tighten, the more difficult it is to escape."

"But," Kenji began and pushed his fingers together, inwards towards the center of the finger trap.

"If you become close, if the two fingers near each other, then," Kenji paused and watched the openings of the finger trap enlarged and he pulled his fingers out.

"Tadaa," he said, grinning.

Kiba and Tsubasa looked at the finger trap, their eyes widened.

"So maybe," Sho said, "You guys are like that too?"

Tsubasa thought about it. She remembered…when they began fighting, the stronger the force felt, pushing them closer.

"M-maybe…" Tsubasa started.

"What the hell being closer means?" Kiba asked, frowning.

"I dunno." Kenji frowned. "Maybe hug or kiss or something,"

There was a silence moment between all of then. Then Kiba's and Tsubasa's eyes widened.

"**WHAT**?!!"

* * *

what do you guys think will happen next? XD review please! 


	8. What happened!

Cat and Dog

Chapter 7

-

-

"What?" both Tsubasa and Kiba shouted at the same time.

They turned to face each other and a look of disgust appeared on their faces.

"Why would I want to kiss _her_?" Kiba asked, emphasizing on the last word, pointing at Tsubasa.

Tsubasa narrowed her eyes. "What the hell that's supposed to mean?" she glared. But she couldn't help but feel a painful tug inside of her when she heard him say that. _Why?_

Tsubasa crossed her arms and turned to face Sho and Kenji. "I don't want to kiss him."

_Why would I want to waste my first kiss on this…**dog?**_

Kenji looked at Sho and smirked. "It's not a mater of you guys _want_ to or not." He said, twirling the finger trap in his hand.

"You **_have_ **too." He said and tossed the finger trap to Tsubasa. "You know, in order to be separated."

Tsubasa looked at the finger trap, and thought about it.

Kiba narrowed his eyes. "And how sure are you it's going to work?"

Kenji shrugged. "It's a try."

"No way." Kiba said quickly.

Sho stepped in. "Well, if not a kiss, then a hug?" He looked at Tsubasa. "A hug wouldn't hurt, right?"

Tsubasa looked into Sho's eyes, still deep in thinking.

_Maybe it would work…Then we wont be stuck forever and Niisama doesn't has to know…_

_But__ if I hug him or kiss him…_

**_Oh yuck._**

_But then…__there's no other option now_

_A hug won't hurt…_

Tsubasa took a deep breath and then turned to face Kiba. She opened her mouth to speak, but before she could say anything yet, Kiba spoke.

"It's disgusting," Kiba frowned.

Tsubasa narrowed her eyes and closed her mouth.

"Well?" Kenji asked.

Tsubasa turned to face her friends and spoke. "No." she answered and stood up.

Kiba became startled when he was pulled upwards all of the sudden. He looked at Tsubasa. "what?"

Tsubasa didn't answer him, instead she looked at her friends and smiled. "Thanks anyway," And without waiting for Sho's and Kenji's answers, she left, dragging Kiba along.

Sho and Kenji looked at each other."Too bad it didn't go as planned," Sho smiled.

Kenji grinned."Nah…it'll happen."

Xxx

"And where the hell are we going?" Kiba asked. They were jumping from tree branch to tree branch, with him following her lead.

It's not like Kiba wants to, but it's better than staying with her friends and their disgusting plans.

"Somewhere where no one can see us," Tsubasa answered.

Kiba listened to her answer and narrowed his eyes. "What the hell for?" Then it hit him and he raised an eyebrow. "Ahhh..." he nodded his head. "You want us to kiss without your friends watching."

Tsubasa turned to face him, eyes narrowed. "When hell freeze over,"

"So you do want," Kiba smirked. "Too bad I have to turn you down. I don't date cats."

Tsubasa glared and jumped down from the tree branch into a clearing.

She reached into her weapon bag and took out a kunai.

Kiba looked at her suspiciously. "What the hell are you gonna do?" he asked.

Tsubasa brought the blade nearer to the both of them, towards their connected shoulders.

"To separate us," she answered.

Kiba's eyes widened in surprised, and in horror.

He wanted to be separate too, but not to the point of taking an extreme measure like this "Are you stupid?" Kiba said, grabbing the kunai from her. "You'll injure us!"

Tsubasa narrowed her eyes at him and fished out another kunai from her bag. "At least it'll get us separated!" she said and brought the kunai closer again towards their connected shoulders.

"We're connected by chakra, not flesh!" Kiba said, trying to reason with the cat mistress before she can harm herself and him. "Try to use some sense."

"I am," Tsubasa said and at that moment, Kiba felt chakra force emitting from the kunai.

"Don't be an idiot" Kiba tried again.

Tsubasa looked at him seriously. "I'll cut off my skin, so you don't have to be injured."

"That's stupid!" Kiba said and reached for the blade. "Let it go."

"NO!" Tsubasa shouted.

"There are other ways, idiot!" Kiba shouted back. She was really testing his temper.

"LIKE WHAT?!!" Tsubasa screamed. Her golden eyes were shining with seriousness and her face flushed red from anger. "It's turning night soon and I'm still stuck with you! How can I go home?! Or sleep? Bathe? With you sticking here!"

Kiba narrowed his eyes. "Quit saying it like it's my fault! You brought this upon yourself too!!"

Tsubasa bit her lip and threw the kunai away. She looked away and rubbed her temples.

"Niisama is going to kill me," she said to herself.

Kiba kept quiet. He tried to imagine what his family would do if they see him and Tsubasa stuck together.

Him mom and sister will be shocked and then they would probably laugh. Even if Tsubasa was their family's enemy by nature, his family will still find it funny.

But the frightened look on Tsubasa's face right now told Kiba that what he imagined won't happen in the Maneki family.

He remembered seeing her scared face at the village, after their fight when her brother showed up.

"Why are you so scared?" he asked, curious.

Tsubasa turned her head and looked at Kiba as if he had asked the stupidest question she had heard.

"Why not?" Tsubasa asked back. Then she sighed. "We're gonna be stuck forever…"

"Like I'd let that happen." Kiba said, crossing his arms.

"Then you have a plan?"

"No."

"I thought so."

Kiba narrowed his eyes. "What's that supposed to mean? I'm dumb or something?!"

"No. I meant that—" Tsubasa paused and smirked. "You know what? Yes, yes you are."

Kiba opened his mouth to retort back and then closed it again. "Forget it. You're just wasting my energy."

Tsubasa kept quiet. She wanted to argue more, but Kiba did state a good fact.

"I just wanna go see Akamaru," Kiba said, softly to himself.

But Tsubasa heard and she became curious. "You fought?"

Kiba looked at her, surprised that she was interested to hear about him and Akamaru.

"He's upset with me" Kiba paused. "Because of you."

Tsubasa furrowed her eyebrows. "So what do you want me to do?" she asked, eyes narrowed. "Follow you and go apologize to your dog? He'll be more pissed if I, a _cat_ go with you."

Kiba turned and look at her. "I know that!" He glared. "Why do you think I'm still here?"

"Because we're stuck together." Tsubasa said, rolling her eyes.

"Yes and that I haven't force you to follow me."

Tsubasa kept quiet and looked away. "What would you do if it was me and Yue fighting?" she asked, suddenly.

Kiba furrowed his eyebrows. _What kind of question was that?_

"This sucks." Tsubasa said to herself. "I'm stuck with you for god knows how long and I can't even see Yue-chan."

"What makes you say that?" Kiba asked.

Tsubasa turned. "Do you want to go near her?"

"No."

"I thought so."

There was a silence between them. Then Kiba spoke. "You wouldn't near Akamaru anyway, correct?"

Tsybasa looked at him. "yes."

Another silence.

Tsubasa looked up at the sky and tried to think of a way they can solve this.

_How can it be solve? We are cat and dog. Natural enemy. And because of that, we can't even see our pets and probably not even go back to our own houses._

_Unless…_

"I take that back." Tsubasa said suddenly. Kiba looked at her. "What?"

"I'd go see your dog—"

Kiba cut her off. "His name is Akamaru."

Tsubasa narrowed her eyes, annoyed for his interruption. "Whatever."

She continued. "I'd go see _him_ if you'd go see Yue-chan."

Kiba looked at her confusedly, eyebrows furrowed. "I have to agree to follow you see your cat?"

"And I'll agree to follow you see your dog." Tsubasa said. "We might probably bite and scratch each other, but to me, as long as I can be close to Yue-chan, that's all that matters."

Kiba thought about it. _True, it would be hard, but it's better than not seeing Akamaru and apologizing to him._

Besides, who knows how long they're gonna stay like this.

"Fine," Kiba said. "I'll follow you see your cat if you agree to see Akamaru."

Tsubasa nodded her head. "Fine."

Kiba nodded and sniffed the air. He found Akamaru's scent and pointed behind them.

"He's at the memorial."

Tsubasa nodded but hesitated for a second. She can't believe she's gonna do this. What she's doing is like agreeing to end the fight between all cats and dogs.

Somehow, it feels like she's betraying her own roots.

Tsubasa sighed and nodded to Kiba_. But as long as I can still see Yue-chan…I'm okay._

They were about to leave towards where Akamaru was when they felt the pressure around them loosened.

Curious, they looked at their connected shoulders and their eyes widened in surprised when they saw the small gap between the two of them.

They were separated.

"H-how…" Tsubasa asked, shocked.

"What did you do?" Kiba asked.

Tsubasa shook her head. "Nothing. What did you do?"

"Nothing."

"Do you think it had a time limit or something?" Tsubasa asked curiously.

Kiba shrugged. "I'm getting out of here before it happens again."

Tsubasa's eyes widened. "Can it happen again? That was our punishment right? Now that we solved it, we are free, correct?"

Kiba thought about it. "I guess." Then he smirked. "I'm still getting out from here before you drive me mad again."

Tsubasa smirked too. "You're already mad to begin with."

Kiba's narrowed his eyes. "I'll pretend you didn't say that so I don't have to waste my time here and go to Akamaru."

Tsubasa stood there, frozen for a second. _That's__ right…we're separated. We don't have to see each other's pets._

"Bye then," Tsubasa said and walked towards where she had thrown her kunai.

She bent down to pick it up when she heard Kiba shouted behind her.

"Oi."

Tsubasa turned and looked at him.

"Tell your friends it didn't even need a kiss or a hug." Kiba smirked. "They were wrong."

Tsubasa didn't reply him. She packed her kunai and turned to other way.

"Get lost Inuzuka." She told him and began walking in the other direction.

Kiba smirked, watching her retreating back before he too, turned and went on to find Akamaru.

* * *

R&R 


	9. It's Not Over

**Cat and Dog**

-

Chapter 8

-

-

It was early morning the next day and Tsubasa walked towards the training ground to meet her new team.

She was going to tell them and Kurenai that she won't be able to join them that day as she had a family's ceremony to participate that day.

And she paused on walking when she noticed a familiar figure standing a few feet in front of her.

"Hello Tsubasa,"

Tsubasa nodded her head slowly. "Good morning, Tsunade-sama."

Tsunade looked at her. "Ah, I see you got yourself free from Kiba," She smiled.

The way that Tsunade was smiling somehow scared Tsubasa. It was like there was a private joke playing about her that only Tsunade knew.

"How did you do it?" Tsunade asked, clearly not looking impressive at all.

Tsubasa gulped quietly. "I-It just happened."

"I see." Tsunade nodded her head. "I hope it won't happen again." She said. "It'd be bad for the Maneki's ritual tonight, won't it?"

Tsubasa's eyes widened. "What do you mean again? It's not fully broken?"

But Tsunade didn't answer her, instead she smiled and left.

Tsubasa stood there eyes widened, shocked. She stood there for a few seconds, deeply thinking.

_If it's not fully broken…that means if I see that dog…we might get stuck again…_

_…I gotta tell him before this happens again!!_

Tsubasa was ready to make a run for it, to find Kiba and tell him about what she had just learn.

But just as she was about to turn around, someone bumped into her from behind.

"Oi! Don't stand in the middle of the road!"

Tsubasa's eyes widened. She knew the voice. She looked and saw Kiba standing behind her, rubbing his nose.

"I have to tell you something," Tsubasa started.

Kiba looked at her, annoyed. He was running towards the training ground, in order not to be late, and she just had to stand in the middle of the road and stopped him.

"What?" he asked, still rubbing the tip of his nose. "That your head is as hard as a rock?"

"No." Tsubasa glared. _Don't__ pick a fight with him…_

"I saw Hokage-sama and she—"

"Will you hurry up?!" Kiba said, glaring. _Kurenai__ will kill me if I'm late again…_

"Will you listen first?!" Tsubasa shouted. _Argh_

"THEN HURRY UP!!"

"I WILL IF YOU STOP INTERRUPTING ME IDIOT!!"

"WHAT WAS THAT?!! IF I'M LATE, I'M TELLING KURENAI IT'S YOUR FAULT!"

"STOP BEING CHILDISH AND LISTEN TO ME MORON!" Tsubasa shouted, face red. "TSUNADE-SAMA SAID THAT—"

Her words were cut off when Tsubasa felt a familiar pressure on her shoulder thickened. Her eyes widened. _Oh no…_

And before they could blink or grab on anything to prevent if from happening, the two of them were thrown towards each other.

Their shoulders were connected once more.

"What the hell?!!" Kiba shouted.

Tsubasa stood there in disbelief. The thing that she was trying to avoid the most had returned.

"Oh great…"

xxx

When the two of them arrived at the training ground, their teammates looked at them, surprised.

"You're still stuck together and you haven't kill each other?" Kurenai asked. Her two students were late, but seeing the two of them connected by the Godaime's jutsu was the best punishment anyone could come up with.

"I'm impressed." Shino said. Hinata smiled sympathetically at the two of them.

Tsubasa frowned and glared at Kiba. "We got separated yesterday, but this idiot just had to—"

"How would I know you were going to talk about it?!"

Tsubasa glared. "You should've listened first!"

Kiba opened his mouth to retort back, but Akamaru's bark cut him off. Tsubasa and Kiba turned around and saw Akamaru looking at them.

Kiba closed his mouth back and nodded his head.

He had apologized to Akamaru and promised the dog that he won't lose his temper again like before.

His eyes met Tsubasa's for a second and he quickly looked away.

Tsubasa blinked, a little surprised. _So he already made up with his dog?_

Kurenai stepped forward and looked at them. "Well then, I guess today's training will be two on two."

Tsubasa looked at the teacher and spoke. "Ano…is it okay if we're excused for a little while?"

Kiba furrowed his eyes, surprised. Kurenai nodded her head. "Very well, 15 minutes."

Then she turned to Hinata and Shino. "The two of you can start first." And she turned to Akamaru next, "You too,"

Kiba watched Akamaru left with the teacher, leaving only him and Tsubasa there.

"We gotta remember what we did yesterday," Tsubasa started, eyebrows furrowed, thinking deeply.

"We didn't do anything," Kiba said, frowning. "It probably wears off in an hour or two."

"How sure are you?" Tsubasa asked, worried. _If it's an hour or two, I still can make it to the ceremony without him…but if it's longer—_

"Saa…"Kiba said, crossing his arms. _Why does she look worried?_

"Recall back what happened…" Tsubasa said to herself and thought hard.

Kiba did the same thing. "Met up with your friends, tried to stop you from killing us both…"

Tsubasa thought about it. _No…_Then her eyes widened.

"Wait…" she said. "We talked." Tsubasa nodded her head. "What was it about?"

Kiba gave her a strange look. "Why would I care?"

"Because it can help us separate, idiot!"

Kiba glared at Tsubasa. "We talked about…stuff."

Tsubasa thought about it deeply. _We were bickering and then… we talked about our pets…_

Tsubasa nodded her head. _That's__ right. That's right. I said I'd go find Akamaru with him if he'd do the same with Yue-chan…_

_And__ he said yes and then…we were separated._

Tsubasa's eyes widened. "Wait a minute…" she said. Kiba looked at her.

_That's__ it! It made sense! _

_The finger trap…the more you pull apart the bind tightens. The more you become closer…the bind will loosen._

_Yes__ that's it! We became stuck because we fought…and we got separated because we **agreed** on something…_

"Agree with me on something," Tsubasa said quickly. Kiba blinked his eyes. "huh?"

Tsubasa glared at him. _Why is he so slow?_ With a sigh, she began explaining to him her theory.

"And how sure are you this is going to work?" Kiba asked, one eyebrow raised.

"If it doesn't, I'll chop off your whole arm," Tsubasa said. Kiba frowned. Knowing how extreme she can go, he was sure she really meant what she said.

"What can we agree on?"

Tsubasa thought about it. _What can we agree on? Yesterday we were talking about pets…maybe that?_

"Pets are nice, aren't they?" Tsubasa started.

Kiba looked at her strangely and frowned. "Akamaru's not a pet! He's family!' Kiba glared. "And to think you're a cat master, calling them 'pets' like they're some kind of wild animals!"

Tsubasa blinked and stared in disbelief. _Wha__…Did he just get angry?_

"Idiot!" Tsubasa gritted her teeth. "You were supposed to agree! We could've gotten apart seconds ago!"

"That was a stupid question." Kiba frowned.

"Fine! Then you try it," Tsubasa said and crossed her arms.

Kiba glared and started thinking. _What the hell__ can we agree on?_

He looked up at the sky, the clear blue sky for an idea.

"Blue is a nice color," he said, absent mindedly.

Tsubasa turned to face him, looking strangely. _He likes blue? With his fiery temper and a dog name Akamaru…I'd never have guessed…_

"Who asked about what you like," Tsubasa told him. "I don't even like blue. It's boring." She said, frowning. "Besides, red is better."

Kiba narrowed his eyes. "Who are you to judge which color is better?"

"Is this supposed to be something we can agree on?" Tsubasa asked.

"It could've been if you didn't mess it up!"

"The only person who messed this was you!" Tsubasa said, eyes narrowed. "You leave me no choice." She said and reached out for her weapon bag.

Kiba knew what she meant and quickly reached over; took her hand, stopping her.

"Do you really think this would work?"

Tsubasa looked at him and at their connected hands. She moved her hand away and so did Kiba.

"No." Tsubasa said. "But I'd feel better if I can hurt you."

Kiba narrowed his eyes. "As if I would let you."

"Time's up!" Kurenai shouted from a far. Kiba and Tsubasa looked at the jounin, frowning. _We couldn't do it…_

"You guys have t start training while still like this," Kurenai told them, a smile plastered on her face.

"Shino, Hinata," Kurenai called out then.

Tsubasa sighed to herself. "This is all Tsunade-sama's fault."

"Tell me about it," Kiba said, rolling his eyes. "She could've given us other kind of punishments."

Tsubasa nodded. "I don't mind even it's some kind of childish mission."

"Or S-rank missions…"

"Yeah…" Tsubasa nodded. "That's better than this."

"Kiba, Tsubasa," Kurenai called out.

The two chuunins nodded and began walking towards their team. It was then, they felt the familiar pressure around them loosened.

And they were separated.

Kiba and Tsubasa looked at each other. _Did we agree on something?_

But before she could think more deeply about it, Tsubasa shook her head. _I don't have time for this. Better get out of here before it can happen again._ She walked towards Kurenai.

"Kurenai-sensei, actually—"

xxx

"Hi Hinata-chan!" Sakura said, waving her hand happily. Naruto looked up from his bowl of ramen, and grinned when he saw Hinata, Shino and Kiba.

"Long time no see!" he said with a mouthful.

"Hey." Kiba greeted back. He walked towards Naruto and sat beside him.

"Where's the other member?" Shikamaru, who was also there with his team, along with Neji and his team, asked.

Kiba's eyes narrowed as Shino answered. "She had another plan."

"Aww…Tsubasa's not here," Kenji said, frowning.

"Too bad," Tenten said, "I really want to get to know her." Neji narrowed his eyes. "No you don't."

Lee shook his head. "She is a fiery woman with burning spirit of youth! I can feel it coming from her the other day!"

"What you felt was her anger towards Kiba," Chouji said, as he ordered for another bowl of ramen. Naruto did the same.

Kiba kept quiet, made his order and ignored what his friends were saying.

Ino looked up from her tea. "Too bad, I want to see that special jutsu Tsunade-sama made on them."

Kiba narrowed his eyes. _How did she know? _He turned to his teammates. Shino and Hinata shook their heads.

And before Kiba turn to face Sho and Kenji, they already answered his unasked question.

"We didn't say anything. The whole village saw you two this morning, _conjoined twins._" Kenji grinned. "It's really too bad Tsubasa's not here…"

Sho smiled. "Didn't she say that the ceremony is taking place tonight?" He asked, slurping on his soup. "She must've gotten home to get ready."

"Ceremony?" Naruto asked in between his chews. He eyed Chouji who was eating his 10th bowl hurriedly. "Who's this girl anyway?" he asked as he too hurried up his pace.

"Oh! I heard about it!" Sakura said, eyes gleaming excitedly. "When a Maneki cat is of age, there will be a ceremony for the cat's evolution."

Sho nodded. "Tsubasa told us that before remember?" he asked Kenji. The latter nodded his head. "Yeah…Yue had to be kept indoors so nothing can happen to her until the ceremony takes place."

"Why is that?" Tenten asked, curious.

Sho shrugged. "Tsubasa said to us before that if the transformation goes wrong, the cat can turn into a _bakeneko_ In order for that not to happen, they confine the cat so it won't get influenced from the outside world."

"But the ceremony is tonight right?" Hinata asked.

Kenji nodded his head. "I guess she didn't want to come to avoid getting _stuck_ again."

Kiba can feel the former looking at him, but he ignored them. _Why were all of them so interested to know about that cat anyway?_

"I can see why," Ino said as she eyed Naruto and Chouji who were having their own ramen contest. "I heard her brother; the head clan is really scary."

"Scary?" Sakura asked.

Ino nodded. "Quite aloof, and very strict, that Maneki Tsuno-san." She said. "That's what Shikamaru's dad told my dad when he came over the other day after the head of clans meeting, right?" she turned to face Shikamaru.

Shikamaru shrugged and yawned.

Sho nodded. "Tsubasa's brother raised her. She respects him so much that she's scared to do anything wrong in front of him."

"I really want to get to know her," Tenten said. Hinata smiled, "She's nice."

Kiba rolled his eyes. _Yeah right…_

"Kiba's very lucky then, ne?" Kenji said, smiling mockingly. Kiba frowned and bit back the temptation to punch the former into a pulp.

Naruto looked up from his clean bowl, having winning the competition against Chouji and looked at his friends. "So, who are we talking about?"

* * *

hey guys. hope you all like the chapter. anyway, i just want to tell that i won't be able to update on a regular basis anymore. i'm entering college tomorrow and i'll be boarding there so it's hard to do this unless i'm back at home or have really free time. but i promise i will end this the way i want it to end.

with that said, i hope you guys will review and give me support so i feel encouraged to finish this story soon! hope to see you all very soon!

thank you!


	10. What's my name?

Hello everyone

It's been two weeks since I entered college. It's all fun and all, living in dormitories and hanging out with friends. Just started my law classes, a little boring, but it'll get better. (I hope so!!)

anyway, here's the next chapter. hope you guys will enjoy it!

now i must get back to my assignments... sigh...

-

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**Cat and Dog**

Chapter 9

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Tsubasa sat down on the tatami mat in her room and let out a sigh of relief.

The ceremony had just ended and it was a success. She looked over to her left where Yue was curled up, sleeping soundly, tired.

Tsubasa smiled as she ran her fingers through Yue's fur. She felt glad that her cat's evolution went normally.

_And now__ Yue can go out again…_

There was a knock on the door and Tsubasa looked at it, curious.

"Yes?"

The door was pulled open and she saw Arai-sama looking at her. "Your brother wishes to see you."

Tsubasa took a quick glance at the clock. _It's__midnight__. What does Niisama has to say?_

She nodded her head and stood up. Tsubasa followed the head advisor walking towards her brother's study room.

They arrived at the room and after knocking it, stepped into the room, and Tsubasa looked at her brother, wondering.

He was at his study desk, looking at a map, eyebrows furrowed seriously.

"Niisama, you wish to see me?"

Maneki Tsuno looked up. His black hair was tied neatly into a low ponytail and he had the same pale skin and golden eyes like Tsubasa's. The trademarks of a Maneki.

Tsuno nodded his head and looked at Tsubasa. "I am going away for a few days." His voice was chilly, but it wasn't something Tsubasa wasn't used to.

"Where are you going?" Tsubasa asked, eyebrows furrowed. Her brother doesn't normally travel a lot, now that he is the head of clan.

"There is trouble with the clan in Sand." Arai told her. Tsuno nodded his head.

"Arai will be looking after you while I'm away." Tsubo said.

Tsubasa nodded her head. "Have a safe trip Niisama." She said and bowed.

"Tsubasa," Tsuno called out. Tsubasa looked up and her eyes met her brother's.

"Is the rumor true?"

Tsubasa blinked. "What rumor?"

Arai stepped in. "About you and Inuzuka Kiba,"

Tsubasa's eyes widened a little and she saw her brother raised an eyebrow curiously. "Oh that."

She took a deep breath and cleared her throat. _There's__ no way to escape now…_

Xxx

When Tsubasa arrived at the training ground the next day, Yue was following her like before.

Hinata saw them arrived and smiled as she greeted them good morning.

"Good morning," Yue, spoke and Hinata's eyes widened slightly upon hearing the cat's voice.

"She spoke." Shino pointed out. Tsubasa nodded her head.

Hinata looked surprised. "I-I know ninja cats can talk but Yue-chan haven't talk before…"

"Maneki cats can only speak after they completed transformation." Tsubasa explained. Yue nodded her head.

Kurenai approached them. "So I assume the ritual went smoothly?" she asked. Tsubasa nodded her head.

"Any other special ability other than talking?" Kurenai asked.

"Em." Tsubasa nodded her head, smiling. "We have our elements now." She said. Yue nodded. "I am water,"

Tsubasa added, "Wind." She pointed to herself.

"Ice," Shino concluded. Tsubasa nodded happily. She was glad that she is now able to work with her own element.

"Morning," Another voice spoke and all of them turned around to see Kiba and Akamaru arrived.

Tsubasa looked at Kiba. He looked like he had just woken up on the wrong side of bed. His hair was messier than usual, had a deep scowl and his eyes were narrowed angrily, like a wolf watching its meal.

And strangely, there was a red mark on his left cheek, like he had hit into something.

_Fell out of bed, perhaps?_

"What's eating you?" Kurenai asked.

"Nothing," Kiba quickly replied. His eyes caught Tsubasa's for a second before he turned away, crossing his arms on his chest defensively.

Kurenai ignored Kiba, as if it was normal for one of her students to arrive in a bad mood, and clapped her hands.

"Okay…let's start today's training…"

xxx

"So you are actually my grandmother" Tsubasa spoke. Yue nodded her head.

Tsubasa smiled. "Then, Tsuno-niisama's Juuno is your brother?"

"Older brother," Yue corrected.

"We're the same then," Tsubasa said. The two of them were walking back home together, talking to each other.

Besides, how normally are you able to talk to your own cat?

"I know that the ancestors of the clan will become the Maneki cats in their future lives and are only awaken after the ritual…" Tsubasa started and looked at Yue.

"But I never expected that you'd be my grandmother,"

Yue smiled. "You were hoping for someone older?"

Tsubasa shook her head. "No, I'm just honored that your second life is with me."

She looked at Yue, "Then what should I call you?" she asked. "Niisama told me when I was small that your name is Kirara, should I call you that?"

Yue shook her head. "That's my human name. I had fire element back then. But now I'm water." Yue smiled. "You can still call me Yue."

"Thanks." Tsubasa said. "I'm looking forward to—" she paused when they were walking towards the memorial and saw a figure standing there.

Tsubasa's eyes narrowed. _What is he doing here?_

Kiba was standing in front of the memorial stone, staring at the names of deceased ninjas carved on it.

But he was actually staring at one name.

His head was clouded with thoughts and emotions that he didn't realize Tsubasa was watching him until she stood beside him.

Kiba didn't glare at her, merely narrowing his eyes at her presence.

"What?" he asked. He wasn't in the mood to talk or argue or get stuck with her at the moment.

From the corner of his eyes, he saw Tsubasa shrugged.

"Saa…I'm just visiting them," she said, looking at the carved names.

"Hmph." Kiba replied, hands in his pocket. It was then he realized her cat wasn't with her.

"Yue-chan wanted to go home early," Tsubasa answered his unasked question.

Kiba frowned. "I didn't ask."

Tsubasa turned to face him. "You wanted to."

Kiba furrowed his eyebrows. The girl was getting on his nerves. "What do you want?"

Tsubasa shrugged. "World peace?"

"That can be accomplish when we catch that bastard Sasuke,"

Tsubasa narrowed her eyes. "What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing," Kiba answered. The same answer he had been giving his teammates. Except, unlike Tsubasa, they knew what was going on, because they didn't press on the matter.

"What's bothering you?" Tsubasa asked again.

"Why do you care?"

"Well," Tsubasa started. "I'm a cat, so I'm naturally curious. And Sho said before that when someone is grumpy, you should try and make them happy." She said and frowned when she realized how lame it sounded.

Tsubasa shook her head. "In any way, even if that person is the least person you like," she said and glanced at him. "We should cheer them up."

Kiba eyed her. Why was she so worked up to know what was bothering him? "You're not a good counselor,"

Tsubasa shrugged. "I don't need to be. I'm a girl. We're talented."

"Oh, you're a girl?" Kiba raised an eyebrow. He watched her face contorted from angry into calm and then turned to annoyance.

Her frown made him smirked.

They were silent for a while. Just standing beside each other, looking at the memorial stone.

It was after a few minutes, Kiba took a deep breath and spoke. "Today is a death anniversary in my family."

Tsubasa didn't turn to look at him. Instead she nodded. "Your father?"

Kiba nodded his head. Then his eyes widened. "How did you know?"

Tsubasa pointed to the memorial, at one name that was carved there.

"Inuzuka Shita," Tsubasa said. "He passed away a few months after you were born, from the fight against the Kyuubi."

"Yeah…" Kiba said, surprised that she knew so much.

Tsubasa smiled. "A few names down from your father's name is my father's." Tsubasa answered. "So I guessed it was for the same reason."

Kiba looked at the memorial stone, his eyes scrolled down the names after his father's and he did find the name Tsubasa said.

Maneki Ootori.

Kiba blinked, how come he didn't realize that?

"My mother was pregnant when that incident happened." Thsubasa said. "I was born without knowing my father too." She said and shrugged.

"Death happened a lot in this village that everyone began to accept it at a faster rate than normal people world." Tsubasa said and turned to Kiba.

"So why are you so hang up about it, even when you have never seen or know your father?"

Her words seem a little harsh, to be speaking about a late parent like it was nothing.

But to them ninjas, it made sense.

"I said the same thing to my sister." Kiba spoke. But for Inuzuka Hana who was 3 years old when her father passed away, she felt his lost greater than Kiba did.

"She didn't take my words well." Kiba added. "I was slapped."

Tsubasa turned and examined Kiba's face. There was still red mark on his cheek and now she knew why it was there.

"I'm fine," he told her when he saw her eyebrows furrowed worriedly.

Tsubasa looked away, embarrassed at being caught staring. She frowned. "I wasn't worrying."

Kiba had to smirked, watching her actions.

"Hey, what happened to your mother?" Kiba asked, out of curiosity. All he knew about the Maneki clan is that it's leader was Tsubasa's brother.

There was no mentioning about their mother.

Tsubasa turned to face him, eyebrows furrowed. "I have a name, you know and it's not 'hey'." She frowned.

Kiba blinked, wondering what she was talking about, and then smirked. "I have a name too."

"Dog breath," Tsubasa said, smirking.

"Stinky cat," Kiba added.

"Inuzuka," Tsubasa's eyes narrowed, warning him.

"Maneki," Kiba replied, challenging her.

"Kiba," Tsubasa said, sort, simple and soft.

Kiba opened his mouth to answer and then paused. "What did you call me?"

"Kiba. Duh." Tsubasa rolled her eyes. "That is your name right? Or is it dog breath?"

"You called me Kiba," he stated, surprised. Aren't they supposed to be enemies? Are enemies allowed to call each other by their first names?

"Well, do you want me to call you dog breath?" Tsubasa rolled her eyes. Why was he so surprised? It was just a name.

"No." Kiba said quickly. "What am I supposed to call you then?"

"My name, obviously."

"Maneki?" Kiba tried.

Tsubasa narrowed her eyes. Kiba nodded his head. "All right, stinky cat." He smirked.

Tsubasa rolled her eyes. _Guys_ "Whatever," she said, giving up.

"Hey," Kiba called out after a few seconds. Tsubasa turned.

Their eyes were locked on each other and Tsubasa noticed the intense look in his eyes. She couldn't look away and for some strange reason, her heart beat faster when he parted his lips to speak.

"Tsu—"

Kiba was cut off short when he heard a whistling sound coming from Tsubasa. He watched her taking out the necklace with the metal cylinder that was now vibrating rapidly, producing a whistling sound.

"It's Kenji," Tsuabasa said suddenly, eyebrows furrowed. _What does he want?_

Before Tsubasa could answer her own question, she heard someone calling her name.

"Tsubasa!!" Sho ran towards her. He saw Kiba standing beside Tsubasa and nodded his head. "Oh good, you guys are separated." He said between pants.

Tsubasa shook her head, "We didn't get—"

"Did you get a call from Kenji?" Sho asked, pulling out an identical necklace like Tsubasa's from under his t-shirt.

Tsubasa nodded her head, looking at her own pendant curiously. "He said he's at the hospital." She furrowed her eyebrows. "Did he get punch again, for double-dating?"

Sho shook his head. "Better than that," he grinned. "I heard that Fumie-sensei is back."

* * *

Reviews please! Please and thank you!

I will try to update as soon as I can! Just hope and pray the classes aren't difficult and the lecturers won't give too many assignments!

Have a nice Sunday ya'll!


	11. A Part of Her

Hi guys!! It feels so long since I last updated. I was fighting with myself either to write or continue reading HP7, but in the end Kiba wins over Harry (obviously.) but I'll continue reading it once I'm done with this. Do you guys like Harry Potter? I haven't watch the fifth movie though..but the last book is pretty interesting!

Anyway...here i want to thank Liz from Element Girls for what she had done. She drew me an adorable fanart of Kiba and Tsubasa that lifted my mood and inspired me to continue writing (and leaving Harry and his missions aside). I want to share the drawing with all of you. But right now, I have no idea why i can't put a link in here. Maybe you guys can show me how? I really want to show her drawing to you guys! (Hope that's okay with you Liz!)

Okay..enough with my ramblings...here we go..

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**Cat and Dog**

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Chapter 10

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"Are you really sure you're okay?" Tsubasa asked, looking at her teacher who was lying in the hospital bed, face sunken and pale.

"Yes, I'm fine," Fumie nodded her head. "Just tired, that's all."

"How long are they keeping you here?" Kenji asked. Fumie shrugged, "A week or so," she answered, frowning. Obviously, she does not like it to be stuck in the hospital for so long.

Sho smiled, "Saa…then we'll be back in our team again,"

Tsubasa's eyes widened when she heard. _That's__ true…No more team Kurenai…_

Xxx

Tsubasa stared at the people in front of her. She blinked in surprise. She had never seen so many people eating at Ichiraku Ramen.

There were around 14 people there, including her.

"So this is the Tsubasa all of you were talking about," Sakura, the pink haired kunoichi spoke.

Tsubasa looked up, surprised to know that the there were people talking about her. She nodded her head and smiled politely. "Hi,"

Then she turned to face Kenji and shot him a dirty look. "What the hell is this?" she asked in a whispered voice.

Kenji smiled. "Lunch, of course. Like I told you."

"You failed to mention, _this _amount of people would be having lunch too!" Tsubasa hissed.

It was earlier that day, after their visit to their teacher, Kenji had invited her for lunch.

_"Tsubasa-chan!" he called out, when Tsubasa was about to head towards her home after bidding the two boys farewell._

_Tsubasa__ turned around and saw Kenji jogged up towards her._

_"Hold up," Kenji said, looking at her. Sho walked towards them hurriedly, not wanting to miss the team's discussion._

_Tsubasa__ narrowed her eyes, suspiciously. "What is it this time?" Every time Kenji called her 'Tsubasa-chan', it means he wants her to do something he knows she normally won't do._

_Kenji sensed this and blinked his eyes. "It's nothing dangerous, I swear!"_

_"The last time you said that, I had to babysit your date's siblings." Tsubasa frowned._

_Sho__ nodded his head. "And she had to chase the kids around town and saved them from climbing the Hokage's office, after you sneakily gave them chocolates," _

_Kenji glared at Sho, "I didn't know they get sugar-high easily." He hissed. "Whose side are you on anyway?"_

_Sho__ nodded his head, "Ah…yours of course," he said. Tsubasa raised an eyebrow but the red-headed smiled innocently in return._

_"It's just a lunch," Kenji said. "No harm, I swear,"_

_Sho__ nodded his head. "He swears." Kenji glared at him, but Sho ignored it._

_Tsubasa__ didn't fully believe them. She saw Kenji elbowed Sho to get the latter to speak._

_"Well, it's been long since we all have lunch together right? There's no training too…" Sho said, smiling. "So please?"_

_Tsubasa__ had to give in. Sho would not do something selfishly and get her in trouble. (And the fact that his smiles somehow always managed to soften her was another reason too.)_

_"…Fine.."_

"I hate you Sho," Tsubasa hissed to the red-headed on her left. "You and your smiles,"

Sho chuckled in return. "I hope you won't take that hatred for long, or you won't be able to get to know these new people," he smiled.

Tsubasa frowned, watching his smile took part of her anger away already. But she was still upset. She was conservative, it takes her time to get to know people, and meeting a whole bunch of them at the same time didn't really help.

And the fact that _he_ was there too, five seats away, sitting next to the blonde and famous Naruto, didn't help much either.

"What's all this meeting about?" Kiba asked, frowning. He, just like Tsubasa, didn't like to be there too.

He messed up his hair, still frowning. "The one day I have a break from training," he complained to himself.

Tsubasa watched him quietly from the corner of her eyes and saw the dog's master sleepy face.

"I had to drag him out of his bed," Chouji said proudly, sitting between Naruto and Shikamaru—the Nara boy watching half interestedly as Naruto ordered every kind of ramen listed on the menu.

Kiba scowled.

"How can you seep when the sun is so high above?" Lee asked.

Kiba glared. "I swear if you say something with 'youth spirit,' I will hit you."

Tenten laughed, "Well, aren't you grumpy."

"Ano," Hinata said, looking at Kiba. "We're here because Tsubasa-chan is going back to her team."

Kiba kept quiet, letting the information run through him. Tsubasa looked at him, wondering of his response.

Her heart was beating faster, for a cause she could not explain. She tried to imagine how he would react.

But before she could dream on it, Kiba had already reacted.

Lips pursed and frowning, Kiba looked up, one eyebrow raised, in annoyance. "So?"

Tsubasa felt her eye twitch. Her heart beat normally again but she couldn't help feeling that disappointment feeling in her.

She opened her mouth to retort something back when Kenji spoke.

"Hey, we're leaving your team too!" he looked at Lee, Neji and Tenten. Neji smirked. "Good riddance."

Kenji looked shocked and Sho smiled. "Well, at least I already know I'm not wanted in your team," he looked at Shikamaru, Chouji and Ino.

Shikamaru shook his head—looking half bored and sleepy after a certain blonde girl had pulled him to this lunch gathering—and Chouji smiled. "That's not true," he said.

"You're okay," Ino grinned and looked at Sho. "As long as you don't get in my way, you're okay with me."

Sho looked at her suspiciously. "R-right…"

"Anyway," Tenten said, standing up. "To our new friends!" she said, raising her chopsticks.

Naruto, who had waiting for his bowls of ramen all these time, looked up excitedly when the chef handed him a steaming bowl of miso ramen. He grinned. "Let's eat!"

Xxx

"Did you have to be that stupid?" Kenji asked.

"Shut up," Tsubasa said annoyed.

"I mean, come on!" Kenji continued, ignoring Tsubasa. "IT was obvious! Everyone knows what was going to happen when you and Inuzuka started arguing."

"Shut up"

"I think that was the plan," Sho interrupted. "To make them stuck to each other."

"Shut up."

Kenji nodded his head. "Obviously. But it didn't sound obvious to them." He looked at Tsubasa. "Couldn't you have guessed that what Naruto was aiming for?"

"Shut up,"

"Come on!" Kenji continued. "You were fighting about what was better, dumplings or spring rolls! We were eating _ramen_! How stupid can you and Inuzuka be??!!"

Tsubasa felt like a vein had popped. She glared at Kenji, restraining her temptation to punch him. "It wouldn't have happened if you didn't invite me in the first place! You bloody perfectly knows what would happen in he was somewhere nearby!"

"You know, I'm right here," Kiba said, clenching his fist in annoyance.

Kenji turned from Tsubasa and looked at the other boy who was glued to his teammate's shoulder. "Oh I didn't notice," he said sarcastically.

He looked at Tsubasa and Kiba and raised an eyebrow.

"It's almost like you guys do want to be stuck."

There was a dramatic silence for a few seconds before "WHAT?" was heard.

"Why the hell would I want this for?" Kiba said angrily.

Sho interrupted again. "Ah, but it was surprising to see the two of them flew towards each other."

Kenji nodded and laughed. "Like magnets!"

Tsubasa clenched her fists and took a deep breath. "I am going to pummel you into pulps when I'm free…"

Kenji laughed again. "Can't wait." He looked at Sho and nodded his head.

"That is, if you can find us," Kenji said and both him and Sho jumped onto a nearby tree's branch and disappeared.

Tsubasa gritted her teeth at first, and then sighed, relieved that they were gone.

She rubbed her temples. "I'm sorry my teammates are assholes," she said.

Kiba kept quiet for a second. "You're sorry? That's a first," he said, nodding his head. "Are you saying this now because we're not a team anymore?" he wondered.

Tsubasa looked at him strangely. "Isn't this what you've been waiting for?"

Kiba shrugged. "At first. But I got used to it," he looked at her, "Used to seeing you around, fight, and getting stuck and all. It was like a daily routine, or something."

Tsubasa kept quiet and felt her heart racing. Her face reddened to her own surprise.

"Surprised it's over now," Kiba continued, unaware of the changes on Tsubasa's face.

Tsubasa took a deep breath and looked away. "Well, the 'curse' isn't going to wear off, so we better just stay far away as possible after this," she told him but deep down she knew she didn't really mean it.

"Hmm, yeah…that's true," Kiba said.

In a second, they felt the familiar bind between them loosened and they were unstuck once more. Kiba's words came like an agreement that had freed them.

Tsubasa looked a little relief that they were free. She took a deep breath. "Besides, we probably won't see each other anymore.

Kiba nodded his head and then realized what she had said. Even though they're not in the same team anymore, there will be times when they have to see each other.

It's a small village after all, and they are ninjas.

_But__ why is she saying otherwise?_

"Once I'm of age," Tsubasa said, looking at the ground, her feet scuffing the earth. "I'm gonna leave the village."

Kiba's eyes widened. That was a surprising answer that he didn't expect.

"Why?"

Tsubasa blinked her eyes. Here she was, telling the one person she despise about herself.

And she can't help but to do it.

"Why? Because I don't want to be a ninja," Tsubasa said quietly.

Kiba's eyes widened. He didn't expect that.

"I want to be normal,"

He looked at Tsubasa, watching her scuffing the ground with her boots, wondering what was he supposed to reply to that.

Tsubasa looked up and saw him looking. His eyes caught hers and she grinned.

"I'm glad that was the last time we got stuck together," she said. She didn't know why she had said it. A part of her was happy, but a small part wasn't.

"Aaah," was Kiba's answer. He really had no idea what he should say at that time.

"Tsubasa," another voice spoke and the two of them turned to see an older man with graying hair, in black kimono and hakama, the Maneki's clan traditional outfit, standing in front of them.

"Arai-sama," Tsubasa bowed her head slowly.

"It is time to go home," Arai spoked. He looked at Kiba, their eyes meeting for a second and then he shifted his eyes to their shoulders, where they had been connected minutes ago.

Kiba watched the older Maneki looked at him and noticed the glance to his shoulder. _Did he saw it?_ There were no emotions played on his face.

No hatred or disgust towards him, the Inuzuka heir. It was just blank.

It was something he knew as a ninja what older Maneki members were good at, concealing their emotions.

Something he thought, comically, what Tsubasa should learn to do.

"You didn't have to escort me home," Tsubasa said, smiling softly.

"It is your brother's order,"

Tsubasa rolled her eyes. "Just because he went out for a meeting, now I'm suddenly well protected," she said to herself. But Kiba heard her.

She turned to face him and saw her smiled. "Let's hope that was the last time we got stuck,"

"It is," Kiba said, watching her walk forward towards her guardian. He stood there, watching the two Manekis walked away, watching them until they were gone from his vision.

He thought deep and hard about the conversation between him and Tsubasa. _Might be our last one…_

Then he shook his head and started walking towards his own home.

Xxx

And as Tsubasa walked with Arai, back to the Maneki mansion, a part of her felt like slapping herself.

**_That was probably the last time you talk to him, and you didn't even took the chance…What's wrong with you?_** A small part of her spoke.

_Take what chance?__ What was I supposed to do?_ She asked back. _Isn't__ it good that now I don't have to see him anymore?_ She said to herself, to convince herself.

But she knew it didn't work. That little part of her was too strong to be convinced.

**_That's_****_ what you think…_**

* * *

Reviews are so much loved! Hehe. Okay, I'm going to continue reading the book, I'm three quarters finished anyway. For those who like Harry Potter too, enjoy reading the last book.

And again, thank you Liz!


	12. falling

Hi everyone! it feels like such a long time since i last updated, ne? i've been busy with mid-sem exams and the assignments all these while. How are you guys?

Ahh...i finished my harry potter 7 in a whole day. it beats my own record of reading the 6th book for two days! how did you guys find the ending? interesting?

Anyway...here you go, the latest chapter. And i apologize if the chapter seems rather...off than the past chapters. i've been thinking of posting it so badly, i think i didnt write it as properly as i could.

I hope you'll enjoy it anyway!

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**Cat and Dog**

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Chapter 11

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"Finally, the three of us are in the same group again!" Sho said, smiling happily.

Surely, his experience with Team Asuma—especially Ino—made him glad his ordeal was over.

But the same couldn't be said to the other two members of the group.

"Hm yeah…" Kenji said, unenthusiastically.

"Hm…" Tsubasa added, her voice too, was lacking the excitement.

Fumie looked at the two students. The two of them looked somewhat distant and…confused?

"What's wrong with the two of you?" she asked.

"Nothing," Kenji said and Tsubasa shook her head.

"It makes me feel like you're not happy that I'm back," Fumie stated, frowning.

Kenji shook his head quickly. "That's not it. I'm just…_thinking_."

Sho turned to Kenji and raised an eyebrow. "Is that even possible for you?"

Kenji glared at the red head. "Ha. Ha." He said sarcastically. Sho shrugged and smiled.

"Tsubasa, you?"

Tsubasa didn't even seem to be listening. Her thoughts were somewhere else.

"Tsubasa" Yue called her and nudged her legs. That got her attention. Tsubasa blinked and looked around. "Huh?"

Fumie furrowed her eyebrows. "Okay, you guys better snap out of whatever it is that's bothering you and focus! The other jounins and I have decided to do combat trainings with other teams! So you have to be prepared!"

"Right!" Sho answered, excited.

"Hmmm…." Both Kenji and Tsubasa replied, sounding dead. Fumie's eyebrows twitched. These kids…

"50 laps around the village!"

"Eh?!" Kenji blinked in surprised when he heard the sensei shouting.

"Me too?!" Sho pointed to himself.

"Hmmmm…." Was Tsubasa's reply. Her mind had gathered back to where she left it before…

Xxx

"Fumie is _crazy_!" Kenji complained as he dragged himself towards a chair. He sat down and lied his head and arms on the table, exhausted.

"This is your fault," Sho said, frowning, as he too limped towards the nearest chair. His face looks like he had just drank a cool cup of lemonade on a hot day when he sat down and let out a huge sigh of relief.

"This is Kenji's fault," Tsubasa agreed as she sat down beside Sho. The three of them, plus Yue, were in their favorite café, after completing fifty round of laps around the village and completed hours of training that continued right after their last lap.

Kenju raised his head and pointed to Tsubasa. "Hey, I'm not the only one to blame! You were in a bad mood too!"

"I wasn't." Tsubasa argued. "I was just thinking…"

"That's what Kenji said." Sho said as he watched a waitress coming up to them. He made ordered for all of them and then turning back to look at his teammates when he was done.

"What were you guys thinking about anyway?" Sho asked, curious.

"Nothing," both Kenji and Tsubasa replied at the same time. They both looked at each other and then looked elsewhere.

"Like I'll believe that…" Sho said. "Kenji?"

"What?" Kenji asked back. He glared, "I'm not telling you"

Sho narrowed his eyes and leaned his head closer to Kenji, his eyes had frightening gleaming in them. "You owe me for making me run across the village," his voice was deep and serious. "I deserve to know and if you won't tell me, I'll tell Sakura-san who dumped her cousin."

Kenji's eyes widened. "Are you threatening me?" He asked in disbelief. He couldn't believe his teammate would say such words.

Sho pulled away and smiled innocently. "Last I heard," he continued saying as if Kenji hadn't spoken at all, "Sakura-san vowed to bury the guy six feet under alive by herself."

Kenji gulped. "Okay, okay,"

He took a deep breath and looked at his shoes.

"Ithinkimreallyfallinginlovewithagirl," he said quickly.

"What?" Tsubasa asked, curious.

Sho frowned and narrowed his eyebrows. "I think he said he wants to turn into a girl,"

"NO!" Kenji shouted. "I said I think I'm in love with a girl!" he said loudly, gaining attention from everyone else in the café.

Including the owner who had just arrived to served them.

"The playboy has finally fallen in love," The owner of the café said as she placed their order. Kenji turned red and tried to hid himself under the desk, but to no avail.

Sho and Tsubasa were looking at him, still shocked.

"Oh god" Tsubasa said.

"Wow" Sho said.

Kenji frowned and ruffled his hair. "Argh,"

"I wonder who's the lucky girl," The owner of the cate, a woman in her thirties said, smiling. "The first round is on me Kenji," she said and winked at him.

"Thanks," Kenji said smiling embarrassedly as he drank his peach tea. He looked up to see his teammates and furrowed his eyebrows when he saw Sho's face contorted funnily, as he tried to hid his laughter over Kenji's problem.

"I'll punch you if you laugh," Kenji said to the red headed. Sho nodded his head and sipped on his ice blended. "What do you mean you think anyway?"

Kenji frowned. "I'm not sure," he mumbled.

"Well," Sho said, "Does she come to your mind most of the time?"

"Yes," Kenji said, looking at his shoes.

"Do you feel like you want to see her all the time?"

"Yes"

"Do you want to be with her until the end of time, protect her even if you have to die in the process and be the father of her children?!" Sho asked, dramatically.

Kenji looked up and furrowed his eyebrows. "What?"

The red haired shinobi chuckled. "Nothing, just want to be overly dramatic."

"Don't." Kenji warned. "I'm not playing."

"All right, all right," Sho said, "Other than the first two questions I asked earlier, do you feel like she has this soft spot in your heart, like when you see her, even in your foulest mood, she could turn it all around for you?"

Kenji furrowed his eyebrows. "That's too deep, but yeah, something like that,"

"Then I think you like her," Sho said. Kenji's eyes widened, surprised by the revelation. "No way…" he said, running a hand through his brown hair.

Sho smiled. He turned to their other teammate. "Ne, Tsubasa?"

Sho blinked his eyes when he couldn't find both Tsubasa and Yue there. "Eh, where is she?"

"She must've left when you were being overdramatic," Kenji said, shaking his head—he still couldn't believe what Sho had said—and sipping on his drink.

"Ahh…" Sho nodded. "It's so easy for her to walk away unnoticed, family's specialty and all. Then," he paused and looked at Kenji.

"Who is it?"

Kenji looked up from his drink, frowning. "Who do you think?"

"Tenten?"

Kenji didn't reply, but continued drinking his peach tea.

Sho nodded his head. "Ahh…I'm sorry to say this, friend." He said looking at Kenji, solemnly. "With Neji-san in the way, you're dead."

Xxx

"Why did you run?" Yue asked Tsubasa as she watched the young Maneki waked hurriedly beside her.

Tsubasa shrugged. "I'm not sure…"

It had started raining when they were in the café, now outside, they were soaking wet. Tsubasa's clothes were drenched with raindrops running down her skin. It wasn't a good thing to do, but she has no idea what had really gotten to her right then.

All she knew, ever since she last saw that Inuzuka Kiba, she had been thinking about…him.

It drove her annoyed at first, but after a while, she let her mind accepts it and only then she began to wonder…

_Why am I always thinking of him?_ _Why do I keep wishing he would pop out somewhere, start a fight with me and get stuck again?_

Tsubasa shook her head. _Why?__ Why?!_

"Tsubasa" Yue called out.

The black haired girl turned, drops of water fell from her bangs into her eyes. "Hm?"

Yue smiled. "I know what's wrong with you,"

Tsubasa blinked and frowned. How was that possible? She herself doesn't even know it.

The Maneki cat smiled when she felt Tsubasa's doubt. "I am your grandmother, I've been through it, and witness your mother through it too…"

Tsubasa blinked, "Through what?"

"Falling in love."

The kunoichi's golden eyes widened. "Eh?!" She turned quickly and shook her head. "I'm not in love!" She said quickly. "I _can't _be in _love!_ Love is for old people"

Yue laughed, "Fine, whatever you young people call it, _crushing_," the cat spoke, watching the young Maneki's reaction slowed down. Yue continued. "Liking someone,"

Tsubasa stood there frozen. Her clothes were really soaking wet at that moment but she didn't care.

"W-what?" Tsubasa asked, surprised. After a few seconds she shook her head. "T-tha-That's impossible." She put on a poker face, but she knew it didn't work.

Yue stepped forward and looked deep into the golden Maneki's eyes.

"Why did you run out from the café?"

Tsubasa thought about it. She knew there was no way she can escape herself from explaining to another Maneki. They were born curious and they will manage to get informations out of someone, one way or another.

Tsubasa closed her eyes and took a deep breath. The cold wind hits her and she shivered a little as she spoke. "Be-because I don't want them to ask me what was wrong with me," she answered.

"And?"

"B-because Sho's questions made me uncomfortable,"

"Why?"

Tsubasa frowned. "Why?" she repeated. She thought about it. _Why did the questions made me uncomfortable?_

She remembered hearing Sho asking Kenji about his problem.

_"Is she always on your mind?"_

**_Isn't_****_ he always on your mind?_**

"Be-because…I can relate my problems to the questions…" Tsubasa answered, quietly.

"What is your problem?"

Tsubasa kept quiet. She knew the answer but she was ashamed of saying it.

"Well?"

Tsubasa sighed. "Because I can't get that dog…" she paused. "_Kiba_" she called his name. Somehow it sounded strangely pleasant to say it.

"Kiba," she repeated. "I can't get him out of my head."

Yue smiled. "And what did Sho said about that?"

_"Then I think you do like her…_"

Tsubasa's eyes widened. What?

"what does it mean?" Yue asked.

"T-That I like him…" Tsubasa said, absent minded.

Yue smiled.

Xxx

Tsubasa sniffed as she began her walk. She should be staying in bed, with the cold she's having. But her mind couldn't rest.

Walking was the only thing she knew would help.

And here she was, walking into the forest—after three hours, two showers, five pockets of tissue papers, two aspirins and three bottles of water—in the late morning.

Tsubasa sniffed again. So far her mind has began to relax from thinking of yesterday's event.

Walking into the forest, the trees around her, it really had calmed her. She stopped in front of a huge tree and looked up at it.

Smiling to herself, Tsubasa climbed on the tree, the normal way, without her chakra. Once she reached a sturdy branch, she sat on it properly, letting out a sigh of relief as she watched the scenery below her.

Tsubasa touched her forehead. It felt warm, but she couldn't tell if it was better than how she felt early in the morning when she woke up. It might have been warm from the simple exercise she did by climbing the tree.

Her body was warm when she woke up that morning. She caught a cold from standing in the rain yesterday and a bad migraine from not being able to sleep, thinking about what had happened.

_I like Kiba?_

_As if! That can't happen! We're cats and dogs! Two atomic bombs in a can!_

But a part of her was against that thought.

It has never been done before, but it's not wrong…

**_We're_****_ humans….Besides, Yue didn't even object to it…she even helped you realized it…_**

_But__ how can I like him?_

_He's__ so….unlike me._

**_Opposite attracts…simple as that._**

_This is ridiculous! I'm only 14! This supposed to happen to teenagers, but I can't fall for Kiba! It's not right! It's against the clans! I don't even know why I like him in the first place!!_

**_Love has no reason…it just happens and even if there are objections…love can make it through…_**

Tsubasa blinked. Since when did she have a shrink inside of her?

She shook her head. "I must be crazy. This is the cold's doing. The whole crush on Inuzuka is crazy. A dream, illusion." She said nodding to herself.

"If there is such fate that people like us can fall in love, he'll drop from the sky in front of me," She said, rolling her eyes.

Tsubasa looked up at the sky and didn't see any difference than the usual white cloud and blue sky. She smiled, satisfied.

_See?__ There's no fate. This is just an infatuation. It will end soon and the clans won't face troubles…I won't trouble Niisama too…_

"This crush…it will pass…" Tsubasa said to herself, nodding her head. She looked down at the ground and just as she was ready to jump to the ground, she sensed something was heading towards her from the sky.

Tsubasa looked up and saw a figure falling down right in front of her to the ground below. Her eyes widened.

Kiba was falling towards the ground and he extended his right hand on the ground and pushed himself off from falling.

With a quick back flip Kiba stood upright, brushing the dirt on his palm, still unaware of the person who was watching him then.

It was only when he sensed her, Kiba looked up at that tree and furrowed his eyebrows.

"What are you doing there?" he asked Tsubasa.

Tsubasa's body froze as she watched Kiba. Her eyes widened when she realized what had happened.

_"If there is such fate that people like us can fall in love, he'll drop from the sky in front of me,"_

**_He fell from the sky…_**

"No way…" she whispered to herself.

* * *

Reviews please!

Ah, lately i've been watching a japanese drama called 1 litre of tears. it's not a recent drama, but not that old either. but it is a good drama and will make you cry! i'm serious! for those who've watched it what do you think? i started crying at episode 8.

for those who haven't watch it, do give it a try and tell me what you think, okay?!

see you soon!


	13. is it hot in here?

helloooo!! ahh, it's been so long since i updated! i've been so busy with works, and meetings and studies, that i almost felt like i want to give up writing this story! but i pushed myself forward and tadaa! chapter 12! haha.

anyway, i won't keep you long. enjoy reading!

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**Cat and Dog**

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Chapter 12

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Tsubasa blinked her eyes in disbelief. _No way…_

Kiba looked up, wiping dirt off his clothes. "Oi," he called Tsubasa. "Did you hear me?

Tsubasa was still staring at him, unsure of what to say. Then the reality of what she had spoken to herself hit her and she grew red.

"W-what are you doing here?" she asked in return, praying hard that he couldn't see her red face.

Her face felt so hot right then, her head spinning crazily.

Kiba frowned. Why was she asking the question when she didn't even answer him.

"What are _you_ doing up there?" he asked back and smirked. "Scared to come down?"

Tsubasa narrowed her eyes. "I'm not scared." She replied back. "You're the coward who's afraid to climb up a tree."

"Hey," Kiba said and with a poof he disappeared and reappeared beside her on the tree branch. "I'm not scared."

Tsubasa's face felt hotter then, with him so close to her. She pretended to frown and looked away, rubbing her forehead.

The world seems to spin faster and the temperature seems to rise with him nearby.

"Are you okay?" Kiba asked. Tsubasa turned and met his face, a few centimeters away from her.

Kiba's eyebrows furrowed. "Your face is red." He stated.

"N-nothing," Tsubasa quickly said and looked away. "What are you doing here?" she asked again, trying to change the subject.

"Combat training, with Gai's team." He answered simply.

Tsubasa raised an eyebrow. "And why the hell aren't you training?"

Kiba shrugged. "Akamaru transformed into me and wanted me to leave him so he can train alone."

"And you let him?"

Kiba looked at the sky. "Didn't want to, but he kicked me here."

Tsubasa smiled at the thought of the big dog kicking its master away. Then she remembered something. "You do know Neji-san is out there."

"Yeah."

"And he has 360 degrees view from the Byakugan."

"Yeah," Kiba said simply. "I can smell him from here."

Tsubasa furrowed her eyebrows. "Then get out of here, idiot!" she said, pushing him off.

Kiba grabbed her hands before she could push him and narrowed his eyes. "What the hell was that for?"

Tsubasa glanced at her hands in his and felt her face getting hotter, her world spinning faster than ever.

Kiba noticed the Maneki's red face and felt the warmth from her hands. "Oi, are you okay?" he asked. He pulled her hands towards him, bringing her body closer to him. Then he reached out one hand to touch her forehead.

But before he could feel her forehead, Tsubasa quickly slapped his hand away.

"Go away Inuzuka,"

He smirked. "So it's not Kiba anymore?"

Tsubasa frowned. "Just go back to your training."

Kiba thought about it for a while and then shrugged. "Nah, they haven't found me. I need a break anyway."

Then he smirked. "Besides, it's been such a long time since I annoyed you,"

Tsubasa narrowed her eyes. "I'm not in the mood. Go find another tree."

Kiba furrowed his eyebrows. "What's wrong with you?" Usually, she would shout back at him and then they would get back to their usual argument, and get stuck.

How long has it been since the last time they were glued together?

"Nothing's wrong." Tsubasa said, almost desperately.

_The sight of you, your scent, and you alone is making me dizzy._

Tsubasa didn't dare to say it to Kiba. She hated the fact that he was doing this to her, without even him realizing it.

"You know, your hands are warm," Kiba stated, looking at the pair of hands he was still holding. "Are you sure you're okay?"

Tsubasa nodded her head. "Yes," she said. _Why does he even care? _"Just go away"

Kiba frowned. He pulled her hands again, bringing her towards him. And in one quick move, he placed his palm on her forehead, his other hand holding her hands tightly, making her unable to move away.

Even if Tsubasa wanted to move away, she was glued to the spot. His skin on her forehead, his face so near to hers. She could feel his breath; see the fine lines of his jaw, his sharp nose, his lips…

Her brain felt like exploding. The pain that has been throbbing in her head since that morning seems to have amplified with the appearance of the small voice in her head.

_Can't you feel how fast your heartbeat goes when he's this near? Are you still in denial?_

Tsubasa doesn't know. She never experienced anything like this with any other guy. Not with Kenji or even Sho. Right now, she doesn't want to know what it is.

She just wants the pain to stop.

"You're burning." Kiba said as he felt Tsubasa's warm forehead. He looked up to her face, eyes widened when he saw Tsubasa's golden eyes blackened.

Surprised, Kiba let go of his hold on her and watched her body leaned forward and fell off the tree branch.

"Tsubasa!!" eyes widened, shocked, Kiba did the only thing he could think of.

He disappeared and reappeared a moment later on the ground, arms reached out as he watched Tsubasa's falling body.

He caught her a second later, her body felt lighter than he had expected. Then he let out a breath he didn't know he was holding.

Kiba looked at the girl in his arms. He can feel her weak breathing and frowned. "Sheesh, you should've said you're sick." He said as he placed the unconscious girl on the ground.

But before he could complain to himself even more, Kiba sensed Lee and Neji nearby.

"There he is!" he heard Lee shouted. Kiba's body tensed. _Shit!_ He moved forward, away from Tsubasa and readied himself.

"Tenten, shuriken!" Lee shouted. Kiba turned and saw a shurinken flying out from nowhere and Lee caught it.

Neji was nearing them and Kiba saw that the older jounin had noticed Tsubasa. Neji raised an eyebrow, smirking.

"Lee, give me that." He could hear Neji said. Lee frowned but agreed and Neji quickly threw the shurinken towards Kiba.

Kiba, who had readied himself watched the shurinken flew towards him. He was ready to defend himself when he noticed that the shurinken wasn't heading towards him.

But at Tsubasa.

Kiba felt Shino's and Hinata's presences then, but his mind was fixed on Tsubasa on the ground.

Lounging towards her, in order to protect her from the weapon, the shurinken hit him instead on his side.

"Kiba-kun!" he heard Hinata shouted as he tumbled down on the ground, wincing from the pain.

Xxx

"Kiba!!"

Tsubasa's eyelids fluttered open. She quickly sat up, her breathing heavy.

A 'thud' sound was heard on her right and she turned to see Inuzuka Kiba on the floor, a fallen chair beside him, rubbing the side of his head.

"What the hell you shouted my name for?!" he asked her as he stood up, pulling the chair up as well.

"Jeez…and I was only about to sleep..." he mumbled to himself, messing up his hair as he sat down on the chair.

Tsubasa blinked her eyes and then she looked around her. She was in a spacious room, it was as big as hers back home.

The walls were painted light blue, there were dirty laundry placed at a corner near the white door, a study desk beside the bed she was in, Kiba was leaning against it, and stacks of comic books on the desk.

"Where am I?" she asked.

"My room." Kiba answered.

Tsubasa's eyes widened and she quickly narrowed her eyes and pulled the blankets up to her chest. "What did you do to me?!!"

"Huh?" Kiba asked, face blank. After a few seconds he understood. His face turned red.

"No such thing! Who do you think I am?" he asked back, arms crossed over his chest.

He looked away, to the worn out poster of a band that he used to fancy and continued talking, "You fell unconscious," he explained. "You had a bad fever, my sister was around, so we took you back.

"Oh," Tsubasa said and kept quiet. She looked at the room again. She saw the poster of a rock band pasted on the wall behind her and saw a game console wedged in the gap between the bed and the wall beside it.

The room was just like him. Messy, boyish. Even have his scent.

Then Tsubasa remembered something. The dream that she had.

"I-I had a vision that you were hurt," she told Kiba. The latter looked up and furrowed his eyebrows.

"Hurt from what?"

"A shurinken, from Neji-san," Tsubasa recalled. "It happened after I passed out right? I-I sensed it."

It was something they Maneki were able to do, but she didn't feel like mentioning that.

"Oh that," Kiba ruffled his hair. "It was nothing."

"So it did happen?"

"Um yeah, but—"

"Where?" Tsubasa asked hurriedly, worried.

Kiba blinked his eyes, surprised to see her reaction. "It was fake." He said. He pulled his t-shirt up a little, where the shurinken had hit him. There was no mark.

Tsubasa let out a sigh of relief. Kiba smirked.

"Worried for me?"

"No." She quickly replied.

He grinned. "You called me Kiba a few minutes ago."

Tsubasa's face turned red but she ignored it. "I recalled you were shouting my name too."

It was Kiba who turned red next. "Yeah well I can't call you stinkycat forever."

"Because you realize you're the stinky one in here," She smirked.

"Hey!"

"Even the room smells funky," she lied.

Kiba furrowed his eyebrows. She was returning the retorts he sent her. She was feeling better. He smirked.

"Well at least I know I'm lighter than you," he lied. "You weight a ton."

Tsubasa felt like she's been slapped. Her face turned red from embarrassment. "I didn't ask you to carry me, did I?"

"Sure, I could've leave you alone in the woods. And everyone would call me a responsible person!" he said sarcastically.

"So you brought me here to show off your kindness, is that it?!"

"Duh! I am kind, even to—" Kiba couldn't continue his sentence when he was pulled forward towards Tsubasa by an invisible source.

Tsubasa too, was pulled forward towards Kiba. And once their shoulder touched each other, they both fell to the floor, head first.

"Ouch," they both winced, rubbing their foreheads.

"Well I see that you're all better now." Another voice said.

Tsubasa looked up and saw Inuzuka Hana at the door, looking at them, amused.

"So this is the 'binder'," she said, raising an eyebrow. Then she grinned,

"Can't wait for Okaasan to see this."

Kiba frowned in return.

* * *

so please tell me what do you think of this chapter! personally i don't really think it is very good, rushed in fact. but i've tried my best with this little time that i have now.

anyway, reviews please! love you guys!


	14. Of a dog, a cat and a fox

Hello minna-san!! I'm back! My finals are finally over and now I'm on break! So for these two weeks, I'll try to post more chapters! Wish me luck!

Enjoy this chapter then!

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**Cat and Dog**

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Chapter 13

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Tsubasa looked around the house.

It was nothing like hers. While hers looked quite and rather gloomy, the house of Inuzuka was the exact opposite.

It was warm, bright, and noisy too, with dogs barking playfully, even though only three Inuzukas lived there.

It was something different from what she's used to, but somehow, she does feel comfortable here.

"Don't worry, we told the dogs not to come in," Inuzuka Hana smiled at Tsubasa as the latter's tensed up when she heard the barking coming from the backyard.

"When I say you fainted, Kiba wanted to send you back to your house, but I thought that would give a wrong impression to the Maneki, so we took you here instead." Hana explained.

"Ah," Tsubasa nodded her head, understood. She was walking down the stairs with Hana leading in front. And although it did make her feel jumpy at first, listening to dogs' barking outside the house, she didn't feel threatened by it.

"How do you feel now?" Hana asked her as she led the young Maneki to the living room. They passed the balcony and Tsubasa looked out and saw Kiba sitting outside, playing with Akamaru and a few more puppies.

She watched him laugh, the happiness written on his face and the look of excitement, like a little boy who had just received a candy.

The two of them had gotten separated quite quickly after the jutsu worked, having past experiences made it easy, but to Tsubasa, it felt like it's been a long time since they were that close. She didn't realize she missed getting her shoulder stuck to him.

"Maneki-san?" Hana called her, waiting for her answer.

Tsubasa stirred from her thought and looked at Hana. "Gomen," Tsubasa said, "I feel better than before."

Hana nodded her head, "that's good, but I'd still suggest that you'd take more rest,"

Tsubasa nodded her head back. "Thank you." She looked up at the older Inuzuka. "Ano, you can call me Tsubasa, Maneki is just a little weird…"

Hana raised an eyebrow quizzically just as Kiba walked into the house. "Ne, Neechan, look!" he said, showing his hands that he had cupped together.

His face was flushed red from playing with the dogs and there was a boyish grin plastered on his face as he spoke.

Tsubasa looked at his closed hands and noticed that he was holding a small cub.

"You made him happy," Hana spoke to her brother. "Good job."

"Thanks," Kiba said, patting the cub, who looked back at him affectionately. "You'll get well soon, won't you junior?" he ruffled the cub's fur.

"This is Kiba Junior. I found him while returning from a mission two days ago," Hana explained. "He was caught in a bear trap alone and I took him back. But Kiba got attached to him," she said, smiling proudly.

Tsubasa looked at the small fox cub in Kiba's hands. It was white and there were bandages on back leg, he looked thin but healthy.

Kiba looked up and his eyes met Tsubasa's. Tsubasa froze in her spot for a second before looking elsewhere.

"Oi Tsubasa," Kiba called her name. "You want to hold him?"

Tsubasa looked at him and shook her head. "N-no, he looks fragile."

Kiba smirked, "And you said you wanted to be a vet," he laughed. "What a joke,"

Tsubasa glared. "Fine, let me hold him then," she said, extending her arms to accept the cub.

Grinning, Kiba neared her, leaned in and passed the cub into Tsubasa's arms. Their fingers brushed against each other and Tsubasa felt her face and skin burnt.

She looked at the cub, paying full attention to it, while at the same time controlling herself from blushing hard.

"Hello there," she said to the cub who looked back at her confused. She scratched the cub on its head and smiled when the cub snuggled closer to her.

"You want to be a vet?" Hana asked. Tsubasa looked at the older Inuzuka and nodded her head.

"That's different," Hana smiled. "Why don't you stay for dinner before heading home?"

And before Tsubasa could object, Hana had already decided that the Maneki girl would stay, and went to the kitchen to prepare the dinner.

"Kiba, freshen yourself before Okaasan comes home," Hana ordered. Kiba frowned. "Fine," he said and stuck out his tongue at his sister while she wasn't looking.

Then he grinned at Tsubasa and winked.

"I'll come back soon." He said and Tsubasa looked at the cub in her arms. _He was talking to the cub, how cute._

Then it hit her what she had said and Tsubasa frowned. _Did I just call him cute?_

She shook her head. _Snap out of it! This is wrong. This is wrong._

Patting the cub, Tsubasa looked out the balcony and watched Akamaru, three gray dogs that belonged to Hana and other dogs playing outside.

The cub in her arms whimpered and she looked at it. "You want to play with them?"

She looked at the dogs outside, but she didn't dare to step out.

What if the dogs attack her?

All these times when Kiba and Akamaru were around, she had Yue. Now she is a Maneki in a house full of Inuzuka.

"We'll just wait till Kiba returns k?" Tsubasa said to the cub.

"I'm here already," Kiba said behind her, putting on a new t-shirt as he walked towards Tsubasa and the cub.

He smirked at her, "Why? Afraid to go out?" he teased.

Tsubasa glared at him. Kiba ignored her glare and held out his hands for the cub.

"But I'm surprised that you'd actually hold a baby fox," Kiba said as he took the cub into his hands gently. "They're related to dogs,"

Tsubasa looked away. "Dogs and foxes are different animals,"

"So you're only afraid of dogs?"

Tsubasa turned around quickly. "I'm not afraid!" she said angrily. Then, realizing that she was losing her temper for nothing, Tsubasa took a deep breath. "You wouldn't hold a cat anyway, would you?"

"No."

Tsubasa nodded her head. Kiba slide open the balcony door and stepped out towards where the Inuzuka dogs were. He released the cub and watched the small animal play around.

"You know," Tsubasa said, as she stood behind Kiba, watching the cub too. "Foxes are like cats,"

Kiba smirked, "They're in the dog family," he corrected her. "They have similar physical attributes, don't you know?" he teased.

Tsubasa rolled her eyes, "I said, _like_" she emphasized. "Kitsune, actually, are like us cats."

Taking a deep breath, she began to explain. "For starters, they live long, like the cats,"

Kiba raised an eyebrow and turned to look at her. "Are you saying, dogs are weak because they can't live long?"

Tsubasa furrowed her eyebrows and hit him on the head. "Don't twist my words, idiot."

Kiba frowned. "Oi!"

"Anyway," Tsubasa continued. "Not only that kitsune live longer, it's similar to cat's bakeneko too,"

"And if dogs are portrayed as males, then both cats and foxes are portrayed as women," she added.

Kiba smirked, "Maybe you're right."

Tsubasa looked at him, surprised. That's a first. Kiba turned and looked at the Maneki. "Foxes are also cunning and pranksters like the cats, right?"

Tsubasa narrowed her eyes. "Say that again and I will hurt you,"

Kiba replied her with a laugh. He turned back to face the cub, "But, maybe, foxes have both dogs' and cats' characteristics."

Sighing, Tsubasa looked at the cub as it played excitedly. And absent mindedly, she spoke.

"Maybe, maybe, they're a sign," Tsubasa said. _That a dog and a cat can create something new together._

"Huh?" Kiba asked, confused.

Tsubasa blinked, stirred from her thought. _Did I say that outloud?_ "Nothing, nothing."

Kiba looked at her suspiciously, and he raised an eyebrow. "Oi, what does that mea—" his words were cut out when Hana called for him.

"Kiba, I could use a hand," Hana said. Kiba nodded his head. "Akamaru, watch over him,"

"I can help," Tsubasa volunteered. Hana shook her head. "That's okay, you're a guest here."

Tsubasa watched the Inuzuka siblings walked towards the kitchen and she looked back at the cub who kept on playing with the other dogs.

She kept watching over the cub from the open balcony, but not daring to near herself to the dogs.

"_Maybe, maybe they're a sign"_

She can't believe she said that out loud. Tsubasa shook her head in disbelief. "That'd be embarrassing if he knows it," she smiled to herself.

"Woof!"

A bark startled her then and Tsubasa looked at the dogs just as she saw from the corner of her eyes the cub getting back into the house and started running inside.

Akamaru barked again and Tsubasa nodded her head. "I'll get him,"

She ran after the cub, looking for it. For such a small and injured cub, he sure ran fast.

She tried sensing the cub, but just as she found it, she overhead voices coming from the kitchen and sensed the cub with the Inuzuka siblings.

"What is he doing here?" she heard Hana spoke.

"Ah, junior." It was Kiba's voice next.

After a few seconds, "So?" Hana spoke again.

"So what?" Kiba said.

"I asked you, if you like her," Hana said. "She's nice,"

Hearing the conversation, Tsubasa couldn't help but feel that they were talking about her. She used her jutsu to cover her scent, so they wouldn't know that she was there, and listened well.

"She's okay," Kiba replied. "Sometimes,"

Hana laughed. "You get along well with her now. That's good. At least you're not fighting like last time in the village,"

"Hm," Kiba said, and Tsubasa peeked in and saw him patting the cub in his arms.

"Do you like her?" Tsubasa saw Hana turned and looked at her brother. The two of them were oblivious to Tsubasa's presence.

Tsubasa's heart skipped a beat and she can feel her face getting hot. Kiba didn't look up or answer the question straight away and Tsubasa waited in anticipation.

Her heart was pounding so fast right now. Tsubasa had never realized how much she wanted to hear his answer.

Kiba continued patting the cub and smiled. "Nah," he said and held the cub higher, grinning. "She's a cat."

Tsubasa felt her head dropped, slammed, crashed. She stood there frozen.

Tears formed in her eyes. She wasn't sure whether it was from straining her eyes, or from the ache in her chest right then or from hearing his answer.

She quickly wiped it away and walked away from the kitchen, still in surprised.

_That's_ _his answer?_

She wanted to leave so much right then. It felt so embarrassing. All these time she became confuse because of him, and all that he thought about her was that she's just a cat.

_She's_ _a cat._

She went back to the living room and stood there. Her body felt weak then and she really wanted to leave, scream, cry.

It wasn't that he doesn't like her, but the fact that while she was battling herself on her feelings for him, he only thought of her as a cat, not as a normal person.

And for him to say it so easily, like it was a joke hurt her more.

"Ah, Tsubasa,"

Tsubasa heard and felt Hana's presence behind her and she took a deep breath and turned around, poker-faced.

"I forgot to ask you if you want any drink," Hana smiled.

Tsubasa smiled and shook her head. "Thank you, but I think I better go now," she said. "I sensed that Arai-sama is looking for me," she lied.

Hana looked surprised and then nodded her head. "Ah, that's a shame." She smiled. "We were looking forward for a dinner with you,"

Tsubasa bowed her head a little. "Sorry, maybe some other time. Thank you, for treating me today."

"It was nothing," Hana said. "Ah, maybe you'd like to say bye first to Kiba?"

Tsubasa quickly shook her head. "No, I really should be going. Besides, I'll see him around," she lied again.

Hana nodded and led Tsubasa to the door. "Take care of yourself, then."

Tsubasa nodded and smiled. "Thank you again," she said and bid her farewell as she walked out the door.

She fastened her pace, and left the area as fast as she could.

* * *

for those who don't know what kitsune and bakeneko are, you can look them up in wikipedia. and of course i do know that foxes are related to dogs, but i just wanted to give a point in this chapter.

on a side note, ahh..my birthday is getting so near. on the day of the dead too! i feel so old..

Happy early holloween then!

Reviews are much loved, ne?


	15. I don't want to hear you say sorry

hey ya'll! another chappie! this was longer than i expected, but i couldn't bring myself to cut any scenes out.

anyway, hope you'll enjoy it!

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**Cat and Dog**

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Chapter 14

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"Yo Tsubasa!" Kenji shouted happily, putting an arm around the girl. "Where were you yesterday?"

"Nowhere," Tsubasa said as she pushed Kenji's arm away. She bent down and tightened the straps of her boots, ignoring her teammates.

"We wanted to ask you out yesterday, but you weren't around," Sho said. Tsubasa just nodded her head. "Hn,"

"Are you okay?" Sho asked.

Tsunasa stood up and nodded, "I'm fine," she said coldly.

Sho frowned. "You don't look fine."

Tsubasa forced a smile. "There see? I'm fine." Her eyes caught the cat and saw that Yue was frowning at her. Tsubasa ignored her.

Kenji grinned, oblivious to Tsubasa's bad mood.

"Guess what," he smiled. "I heard Fumie-sensei and other senseis are going to make a big combat practice with all of us involve,"

Sho's eyes widened. "That means all of our teams will combine?"

Kenji nodded. "I can see Tenten again!" he smirked and looked at Tsubasa. "You can see Inuzuka too,"

Tsubasa's eyes darkened. "Why the hell would I want to see that idiot?"

But Kenji didn't seem to notice anything. "I heard that they want to start the training by surprise, so it could be any day in this week."

Sho furrowed his eyebrows. "I hope it's not today, I'm not prepared."

The Maneki girl stood there, frozen when she heard what Sho said. _No way_. She'd have to face him this soon?

_I refuse!!!_

Tsubasa turned around and started walking back from where she came from.

"Ei, where are you going?" Kenji asked.

Tsubasa kept on walking, "back home. I don't feel like training."

Yue followed Tsubasa, watching the Maneki carefully.

Kenji looked at Sho and raised an eyebrow. "What's eating her?" Sho shook his head. "How dense can you get?" he asked, before walking away to follow Tsubasa.

Kenji frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?" he shouted at Sho's and Tsubasa's retreating backs.

"Oi!! What the hell am I going to tell Fumie??!!"

xxx

"Tsubasa!" Sho called out for the Maneki girl. Tsubasa kept on walking.

Sho frowned and in a poof disappeared and reappeared in front of Tsubasa. "Okay stop," he said to the girl and placed his arms on her shoulders to stop her.

"What's going on?"

"Nothing," Tsubasa said, looking annoyed.

"Don't lie to me," the red head chuunin said. He raised an eyebrow. "Does this has anything to do with Inuzuka?"

Tsubasa quickly narrowed her eyes. Sho saw it and nodded. He smiled softly. "I thought so."

"It's not." Tsubasa denied. But Sho didn't believe her. He pulled her hand. "Come on, tell me." He looked at the cat beside Tsubasa. "Yue-san, if you don't mind, I want to take her somewhere,"

Yue nodded her head and looked at Tsubasa, "Don't keep it bottled up," she told her granddaughter before leaving them.

Sho began dragging Tsubasa away and the latter tried to pry her hand away. "Let go of me!"

The red head turned to face her, "Didn't I tell you before, when someone is grumpy, you have to make them happy?"

Sho continued pulling her away, towards the café they always go to. Tsubasa kept quiet. His grip on her hand was strong and firm. She gave up and sighed in return.

Xxx

In the end, she didn't have to say anything to Sho. It was like as if he had read her problem from her face.

Tsubasa recalled back what her teammate had said as she walked back home that evening.

"_You know, this kind of thing is normal," Sho said smiling. "Crushes I mean,"_

"_It's probably because you've been hanging around him too much,"_

_Sho_ _took a sip of his tea and looked at Tsubasa._

"_I guess you could've fallen for Aburame, but you were more interactive with Inuzuka. Besides, the condition Godaime puts you in, as if she's trying to make the two of you to get together." Sho explained. "That made you think it's a crush."_

"_And you know, the thing about crushes is, it hurts. Just like Kenji and his infatuation on Tenten."_

_Tsubasa_ _rolled her eyes. "That's for sure. One day he'll get a punch from Neji-senpai and that'll hurt."_

_Sho_ _smiled, "Maa..that too. Another thing about crushes is that it doesn't last long. Once you know that the other party is not interested, you'll move on. Kenji'll move on too." Then Sho paused and narrowed his eyes._

"_Though, then he would go hunting for more girls he hasn't dated…" he thought to himself. _

_Then Sho shook his head and looked at Tsubasa._"_But, you'll move on." He told her. "So it's actually a waste of time and energy to feel so depressed about it."_

Tsubasa nodded her head and took a deep breath. _Sho's_ _right. No point thinking about it. I'll get over this stupid crush!_

"Yo."

Tsubasa's body tensed when she saw the figure in front of her. She should've sensed him coming, but she didn't pay attention.

Kiba climbed down from Akamaru and walked towards her. Tsubasa cursed herself for being so careless.

"You weren't at combat training," Kiba said.

Tsubasa looked away, not wanting to meet his eyes. "I didn't feel like going," she said and continued walking, passing him.

"Aah," Kiba nodded and walked beside her, oblivious to her actions. "You should've. Your teammate got punched by Neji for trying to hit on Tenten."

Tsubasa smirked. So she and Sho were right. "Serves him right," she said as she fastened her pace.

But Kiba, having longer legs, only took one stride of her two steps and caught up to her easily.

"Why are you following me?" Tsubasa narrowed her eyes.

"Why are you ignoring me?" Kiba replied.

"None of your business."

Kiba nodded. "Ah then it's none of your business why I'm walking here."

Tsubasa stopped walking and turned around to face him. "What do you want?" she asked coldly.

"To walk," he answered, poker faced. "You're blocking the way."

Tsubasa glared at him. "You were the one who came here later," she said and pushed him.

"Ne," Kiba looked at her. "Are you having mood-swings?"

The Maneki girl flushed in return and glared at the Inuzuka boy. "Are you looking for a fight huh?!"

"Ah!" Kiba replied, hands in a fighting stance. "Come on then!"

Tsubasa clenched her fist and raised her arm. But before she could aim to him, she felt a familiar jutsu warming up inside of her and before she could react, she was glued to Kiba.

Once again.

"That worked well," Kiba smiled. "It took longer than I expected though."

Tsubasa was still in a daze. She looked at him. "You wanted this to happen?"

"Duh."

"What the hell for?" She glared.

Kiba glared in return. "So you won't run away again idiot! Like you did yesterday!"

Tsubasa kept quiet and looked away.

"Anyway," Kiba continued, messing up his hair. "I met your teammate, Kitai." He explained. Tsubasa blinked. "Sho?"

Kiba nodded. "He said that I did something wrong to you." Tsubasa kept quiet. Kiba took a deep breath and looked at her, his eyes were serious. "Did I do anything wrong?"

Tsubasa thought about it. Did he do anything wrong?

He made her crush on him, and hurt her without even knowing. Can she actually blame him?

_No, this is my own fault. For letting my guard down._

"No." Tsubasa replied.

Kiba laughed and the Maneki girl looked surprised. "I thought so too," he said. "I'm too good, unlike you," he playfully praised himself and teased her.

Tsubasa wasn't in the mood to argue back. "Idiot," was all she replied while rolling her eyes.

"But," Kiba continued, looking serious again, "I was surprised that you went back yesterday,"

Looking away, Tsubasa fought the thought in her head. _Why does he sound upset?_

_Stop it Tsubasa! You're playing with yourself!_

"Can we get separated now please?" Tsubasa asked. She was exhausted, from battling with herself and from pretending that nothing was wrong in front of him.

"Not yet, I'm hungry," Kiba said and looked at his dog. "Let's go then Akamaru!" he said as he began walking, dragging Tsubasa along.

"Oi!" Tsubasa shouted. "Separate first idiot!"

Kiba frowned. "I haven't had lunch because of the training. I'm too hungry to think of anything else!" he answered and began walking away.

Tsubasa tried to fight him, but nothing else can beat a man in need of food. "Idiot! You shouldn't have gotten us stuck in the first place!" she shouted.

Kiba stopped walking and looked at her, "This is payback for turning down an invitation from Inuzaka's family," he said and grinned. Tsubasa looked at him and blinked her eyes. Then she smiled, "Idiot, the whole village going to turn,"

The shinobi shrugged, "they're used to seeing us like this, it won't be--" his words were cut off when he saw a giant white cat, the size of a tiger suddenly appearing in front of them.

Tsubasa's eyes widened in return. "Juuno," she said, surprised to see her brother's cat.

"Tsubasa," the white cat spoke, it's voice was deep and serious.

"You're back," Tsubasa looked at the white cat, eyebrows furrowed. "Where's Tsuno-niisama?" Kiba could sense the worry ness in her voice and he too, became anxious.

"Your brother is deeply injured," Juuno said.

Tsubasa's eyes widened and her legs became shaky. Kiba realized this and quickly held her so she wouldn't fall.

"W-what happened?" Kiba asked.

Juuno looked at the Inuzuka, his golden eyes watching him intently. The white cat opened his mouth to answer but was stopped when Yue arrived and stood in front of them.

"Y-yue-chan…", Tsubasa called out. Yue looked up. "Tsubasa, the whole clan is here."

Tsubasa's eyes widened. "W-what?" _Niisama_ _is injured, and now the whole clan is here? What's going on?_

"Can you run?"

Tsubasa looked up at Kiba, confused at his question. "Huh?" Kiba looked at her. "Can you run?" he repeated. "I-I think so," she answered. Kiba nodded, "Then, let's go see your brother,"

She looked at him, surprised. Then slowly she nodded her head.

Xxx

The Maneki household was filled with members of the clan from other countries. All of them had dressed alike, in black kimono and hakama. The men's long black hair were tied into a low ponytail, while the women had theirs in a neat bun.

When Tsubasa and Kiba reached the gate, they saw the members of the clan waiting for them. Kiba felt a slight shiver as he noticed all of their golden eyes were staring at him.

"Arai-sama," Tsubasa said to the clan advisor as he waited for her. "How's Niisama?"

"He's sleeping, his condition has stabilized," Arai answered. He looked Kiba and the teenagers connected shoulders. Kiba bowed his head in respect and Arai did the same.

Tsubasa let out a sigh of relief. She bowed her head to the members of the clan and entered the house compound, Kiba following her. But before they could go further, an older woman stopped them. She looked at Tsubasa, her golden eyes staring deep into her.

"Arai, are you going to let them in?" the woman asked. Tsubasa looked surprised for being stopped. "What's going on?"

"What have you brought with you this time?" the woman asked, looking at Kiba.

Tsubasa turned and realized that all of them were looking at her and Kiba's connected shoulders.

"He's an Inuzuka," another man pointed out. Tsubasa nodded her head. "Hai." Three tall lookalike women crossed their arms and looked at Tsubasa, disgusted. "Why are you stuck to him?" one of them asked.

"It's a long story," Tsubasa explained. She tried walking into the compound again. The older woman put her hand on Tsubasa's free shoulder to stop her.

"You are not bringing this filthy _thing_ into the house," the woman said as she squeezed Tsubasa's shoulder hard, digging her long nails into her skin. Tsubasa winced and kept quiet. "He's not _filthy_".

Kiba furrowed his eyebrows. "Hey, you're hurting her!" he said, as saw Tsubasa's skin turning red. He didn't even object to the woman who called him filthy.

"Who are you to talk to me boy?" the woman said, looking at Kiba with full disgust.

Tsubasa winced again in pain but looked at the older woman straight into her eyes. "Ueno-sama," she called the older woman. "He's my friend."

There was a gasp from the crowd and Kiba looked at Tsubasa, surprised. Ueno smirked in return. "What have you done while I was away Kirara? Juuno?" she called out.

Both Yue and Juuno looked up. Yue narrowed her eyes, but didn't say anything in reply.

"You are forbidden to enter the house," Ueno ordered to Tsubasa as she released her hold on the latter's shoulder. "Unless you get rid of that filth, you are not returning here."

Tsubasa's eyes widened. "What?! But I want to see Niisama!" she said and tried to get in again. This time the triplets stopped her.

"Don't even you dare," one of them said.

"Ew, I touched _it._" Another exclaimed. Tsubasa turned. "He's not an _it_!!"

"He's a dog," the last triplet spoke.

"He's human!" Tsubasa shouted, exasperated. "Like us!" she tried to push the triplets away, trying to get in again. "What is wrong with you?!!" Tsubasa screamed. "Let me see Tsuno-niisama!"

"Let me see him!!" Tsubasa pushed the triplets away.

"Tsubasa," Kiba called her, surprised at her sudden outburst.

"You are not bringing this filth into the house," the triplets said.

"Shut up! Let me in—" Tsubasa's voice was cut off when Ueno slapped her.

"You disgusting child. You're a disappointment like your mother." She said, as Tsubasa rubbed her raw cheek. "Kirara, you sure don't know how to do your job well."

Tsubasa glared, "Yue didn't do anything wrong! You're the cowards here!" she leaned forward and grabbed the woman's kimono. "Let me in!"

The woman didn't even look scared. She pushed Tsubasa's hands away, and wiped her hands, as if Tsubasa had brought dirt to her.

"Why—" Tsubasa's face was red and she leaned in to attack the woman, but Kiba held her away. "Tsubasa" he called her.

"Let me go Kiba!" she shouted to him, her eyes now were filled with tears. "I want to see Niisama!"

"Tsubasa!" Kiba called her out, holding her firmly before she could lunged herself to the older woman. "Control yourself." Tsubasa tried to push Kiba's hands away, "Let me go!" she screamed.

"Oi Tsubasa!" Kiba tightened his hold as she was putting up a good fight to release herself.

"I want to see Niisama!" Tsubasa screamed, still prying from Kiba's grip."Oi Tsu! Tsu! Listen to yourself!" Kiba shouted in return.

"What is going on here?" another voice spoke.

Tsubasa and Kiba froze when they saw Tsunade standing beside them. Ueno looked up. "Tsunade, I'm guessing this is your work?"

Tsunade looked at the two chuunins, her eyes unreadable and she nodded her head. "Yes," then she turned to Arai and nodded to him. He nodded his head and walked towards Tsubasa and Kiba. "Get separated quickly," he said softly. "Then you can come in,"

Kiba nodded his head and dragged Tsubasa away. The latter refused to move and tried to stop Kiba from walking away. "Let me see Niisama!" she screamed, tears pouring down her face as Kiba jumped, bringing her along, and the two of them disappeared from the Maneki compound.

They reappeared again standing on a tree branch, somewhere in the forest. Tsubasa was sobbing uncontrollably and Kiba stood there, looking helpless.

"Tsubasa—"

"You could've let me stayed!" Tsubasa shouted. "I wanted to see Niisama!" she wiped the tears from her eyes messily. "They can't do this! This isn't their house!"

"I'm sorry," Kiba said and Tsubasa looked at him. "I got us stuck on purpose and this happened."

Tsubasa narrowed her eyes and punched him on his stomach. "You're an idiot!" she screamed.

"Why are you saying sorry?! The clan is at fault! They're stupid!" she continued screaming and punching Kiba's stomach in anger. Kiba didn't stop her and let her. "They're cowards! Who are they to judge you when they don't even know you!" she looked at him in anger.

"You shouldn't have said sorry! It's them who should be sorry!"

Kiba didn't know how to respond to that. He just nodded his head. "Em,"

Tsubasa panted heavily. She ran out of energy just by crying and punching Kiba. She sobbed quietly and rested her head on Kiba's shoulder, exhausted.

"I want to see Niisama…"

Kiba looked at her and he did what he thought was best to calm her. Awkwardly, he placed his arm around her and hugged her.

Tsubasa didn't say anything in return. She buried her face deeper into his chest and closed her eyes.

* * *

so what do you think? reviews please! they really make my day knowing that you guys like reading it just as much as i like writing it! 


	16. The Reasons

hey guys, another chapter is here! hehe. anyway, not much to say, except i think i rushed things a little in this chapter and it may be confusing. for that, i apologize in advance!

anyway, enjoy the chapter!

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**Cat and Dog**

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Chapter 15

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"_Tsuno-niisama," Tsubasa bowed her head. "I won't believe that you lost,"_

_She looked at the tall figure sitting on a futon in front of her. Tsuno's face was pale and he had bandages wrapped around his torso._

"_Tsubasa," Arai warned her._

_  
The younger Maneki ignored the advisor. She furrowed her eyebrows at her brother. "You're one of the best fighters in the family and in Konoha! You didn't earn the title as Head for nothing! I refuse to believe you went to Sand to fight and lost!"_

"_Tsubasa!"_ _Arai raised his voice._

_Frowning, she bowed her head, "Sorry,"_

_Tsuno_ _looked up at his sister, "I'm having a meeting here," he told her coldly._

_And_ _as if on cue, the paper door was slid open. Tsubasa turned to see the other advisors standing there, including Ueno, Yue and Juuno._

_Tsubasa_ _stood up and greeted them with a bow. She walked out of the room, narrowing her eyes at Ueno who looked back at her smugly._

"Thought I'd find you here,"

Stirred from her thoughts, Tsubasa looked up and saw Kiba standing beside her."What are you doing here?" she asked. Kiba grinned, passing the two plastic bags he was holding to Tsubasa and sat beside her on the grass.

"What are these?" Tsubasa asked, looking at the plastic bag curiously.

"Food, duh." Came the answer. Tsubasa furrowed her eyebrows. _What does he want?_ She turned and looked at Kiba and saw him taking out the firewood that he brought along with him.

"What are you doing?" she asked as she watched him stack the woods together. Then Kiba clapped his hands together and a small fireball appeared in his palm.

"Yosh!" he grinned as he threw the fire towards the firewood and watched as a small fire began engulfing the woods.

Tsubasa broke out into a smile as she watched the bonfire he made. "Idiot," she said quietly and flicked her fingers. A gush of wind rushed through them and the fire burned brighter.

"Show off," Kiba said to her and Tsubasa just smiled and passed him back the plastic bags.

They were both sitting at a clearing, surrounded by the forest. It was night already and Tsubasa looked up to see the countless stars above her.

"How's your brother?" she heard Kiba asked. She turned to face him and saw him handing her a packet of potato chips. Tsubasa raised an eyebrow. Kiba shrugged, "Chouji said eating food helps girls." Tsubasa laughed. "What nonsense is that?"

"I've seen Sakura binge out like a pig when Sasuke left, Hinata does the same when she's nervous to talk to Naruto and Ino—" Kiba paused, "Well I think food is a taboo to her, but it did work on other girls."

Tsubasa rolled her eyes and smiled as she popped open the packet. She took a few potato chips and bit into them. "Niisama is fine," Tsubasa told Kiba as she passed him the packet.

"Apparently during his meeting to the Sand, he got into a fight with the son of the Head of the clan there and was injured and lost." Tsubasa explained. She began munching on the chips nonstop. She wasn't sure if it was really helping her mood, but she hadn't eaten since earlier the day and she was so hungry.

"I'm not sure why they fought, but Niisama's the type who'd only use violence as a last resort. But whatever the reason was, I still can't believe he lost."

"Why are all the members here then?" Kiba asked, passing another packet of potato chips, slightly amused at the short time spent for her to finish the first packet. "Thanks," Tsubasa said as she popped open the second bag. "I'm not sure," she shrugged. "But they're having a meeting now, and I'm not involved."

Kiba nodded his head, "I see…."

Tsubasa looked into the now empty packet of potato chips and then placed it aside. She looked at Kiba, "You've got drinks in there?" she asked, pointing to the plastic bag he brought.

He smirked as he fished out a can of soda and tossed it to her. "You'd turn into Chouji if you keep eating fast like this," he told her, still amused.

Tsubasa looked at him as she gulped down the soda. "It's better than looking like them," she said and placed the empty can aside. The drink warmed her up and she felt her face getting hot.

"You mean those triplets?" Kiba asked, passing her another packet of food without her asking for it.

She nodded her head as she bit into the next food. "They're my cousins; Mei, Rei and Fei." Tsubasa explained. "They're ninjas specialized in information gathering. They used their looks to seduce men, used them to their advantages and then kill them mercilessly."

Tsubasa narrowed her eyes, "The worst kind of ninjas." She looked up from her food and let out a small sigh. "That's why I don't want to become a ninja. Because born as a female in this family, that's what I'll end up doing."

"You can't choose?"

Tsubasa shrugged. "It's what my grandmother and mother did before too."

"Your mother?" Kiba asked surprised.

Tsubasa frozed in her place, her eyes darkened when she heard his question. Kiba blinked his eyes and wondered if he had touched a sensitive topic. Then Tsubasa looked up,

"She became crazy after giving birth to me and left Konoha as a normal person and is nowhere to be found!" she giggled.

"W-what?" Kiba said, looking at Tsubasa quizzically. Her face was red and she was smiling from ear to ear, something he had never seen.

"Are you okay?" he asked. Tsubasa looked at him and grinned. "Okay desu!" she hiccupped. She picked up her can of soda and placed it on her lips to drink.

"Mou, it's empty!" she laughed and tossed the can to Kiba. He looked at it and his eyes widened when he read the label.

"Beer? How did this get in here?!" he asked himself, shocked. He looked into the plastic bag and saw that the other drinks in the bag were soda.

Kiba remembered rushing to a convenient store and grabbed the foods there hurriedly. He must've grabbed a can of beer by accident and bought it.

"Damn…" Kiba frowned. _She's_ _drunk, _he thought looking at Tsubasa who continued eating the food. _And_ _she gets drunk easily too…_

"Ne, you know," Tsubasa began, looking at Kiba excitedly. Her head felt light and she felt like she was on a cloud. "Do you want to know about my family?"

Kiba looked at her, slightly worried. "What are you talking about? You're drunk."

"Once upon a time, the Maneki originated from the Sand you see…" Tsubasa began explaining. Kiba had no choice but to listen to her. "There's this ritual that when a Maneki and his or her cat turn of age, the cat will undergo a ceremony that can either upgrade the cat into a nin-cat or turn it into a bakeneko."

"The cat will be locked in the house until the ceremony, so it won't be influenced to turn into the beast. But one day, a Maneki cat did turn into a bakeneko." Tsubasa explained. "A two-tailed beast, that's what the villagers called it."

"The family was thrown out from the village and forced to be split. They had to create a jutsu to sealed off their powers so the ninjas won't be able to find them and prevent the ritual from happening again."

"My grandmother, her brother and my mother lived as normal villagers. My mother was born without knowing that she is a ninja. Meanwhile in my dad's family, they seek help from Shodaime and were one of the cofounders to the Konoha village."

Tsubasa smiled. "Then one day, my parents met and my mother found out about her ability. She decided to pursue as ninja and married father. Grandmother was happy too, that it was safe for her to be a ninja in this village."

Tsubasa took a deep breath and sighed. "At the same time, some of the clan members came to Konoha and seek my father. Ueno-sama was one of them. With her, grandmother, granduncle and Arai-sama, they became the advisors for my father, who was the Head at that time."

"Then, when my granduncle and father passed away during the Kyuubi attack, Ueno-sama and the others became scared, since the villagers thought they would bring the two-tailed demon to attack the village next." Tsubasa paused. "Sandaime had guaranteed that it wouldn't, but and Ueno-sama and the others left the village."

"At the same time, my mother couldn't accept my father's death. After I was born, she lost it and became mad. Grandmother took care of her. But when she passed away, mother who wanted to live the way she was before, ran away. Tsuno-niisama automatically became the Head with Arai-sama as his guardian, and the two of them took care of me."

"Then a year ago, we found out that Ueno-sama and the others were living in the Sand. They must've felt protected with Gaara around, but when he lost the Shuukaku, they must've felt scared again."

Tsubasa smirked, "They're just a bunch of scaredy cats!" she paused and then laughed. "haha, get it! Scaredy cats!"

Kiba looked at her, but didn't speak a word. Tsubasa sighed and rested her head on his shoulder, much to Kiba's surprise.

"That's why…I can't forgive Ueno-sama for saying that Grandmother, Granduncle and Arai-sama didn't do their jobs well while all she had been doing was running away."

She looked up at him and smiled. "So do you get it now?"

Kiba nodded his head, "Ah, I think so."

Tsubasa nodded her head too. "Good good." She snuggled closer to him and hugged his arm. "But I really want to thank you…" she said, feeling herself getting tired.

"What for?" Kiba asked. He felt awkward being this close to her but he didn't have a heart to push her away.

"You were there when I didn't expect you to be there, you helped me through a lot…"

Kiba smirked, "You wouldn't say these stuffs when you're sober, huh?"

"But you know," Tsubasa continued and looked up at him. Kiba can clearly see her flushed cheeks and her droopy, unfocused eyes. "No matter what Sho said, I can't stop liking you."

Kiba's eyes widened and he felt his face getting warmer. _W-what was that? A- A confession? _He looked at Tsubasa, his eyes boring into her golden ones. She looked at him seriously,

And then broke into a smile. "Just kidding!" she laughed.

Kiba felt like a balloon had popped right beside his ear. "Huh?"

"You're so fun, ne?" Tsubasa laughed as she rested her head on his shoulder again. She reached the back of her head and pulled the chopstick that held her hair in a bun. "I'm so sleepy," she said and yawned.

Her long hair dropped on her back, curled into a single roll. Kiba, absent-mindedly, reached out and straightened her hair with his fingers. He watched her long wavy hair framing her face and smiled to himself. He had never seen her with her hair down before.

"You should wear your hair more like this," he said as he continued running his hand through her soft hair. He couldn't stop himself. Her hair was surprisingly soft and he was surprised with himself too. He had never played with a girl's hair, it would be weird to do it with his mother, or sister or even Hinata, but it didn't feel weird when it's Tsubasa. Kiba never thought he'd enjoy doing such simple thing too.

Then, Tsubasa suddenly looked up at Kiba, surprising him. He froze in his place, his hand still in her hair. She stared into his dark eyes and he looked back at her; her golden eyes, her flushed cheeks, her small lips…

There was something in her eyes that made Kiba's heart raced. He gulped. _No, I can't do this to her…especially now she's drunk… _

But when Tsubasa closed her eyes and snaked her arms around his neck, Kiba couldn't help himself.

He pulled her closer and leaned in towards her lips.

Xxx

Inuzuka Hana looked at the sleeping figure on the couch. She smiled to herself.

An hour ago, Kiba came back home carrying the sleeping Tsubasa in his arms. His face was red and he avoided looking into Hana's eyes.

"_She fell asleep,"_ He told Hana and their mother_. "I can't send her home with her relatives around,"_

_Tsume_ _looked at the sleeping girl and nodded her head. "She can stay here for the night._"

Now an hour later, Kiba, Tsume and the dogs were soundly asleep in their rooms, Hana waited for the arrival of her guest. She closed her eyes and focused on her smelling ability.

She caught a faint trace of a familiar scent and opened her eyes. "I can sense you this time," she said and turned around to a figure who had came in through the window that she had opened for this purpose.

"Tsuno," Hana smiled.

Maneki Tsuno was standing in front of her, and he bowed his head. "Hana,"

Hana smiled. "I knew you'd come for her," she looked at Tsubasa. "While concealing your presence."

"I'm sorry for the troubles Tsubasa caused," Tsuno said as he walked towards his sleeping sister. Hana shook her head, "No, it's no problem at all." She said as she watched Tsuno bent down and carried his sister in his arms.

Hana crossed her arms, watching the two Maneki siblings. "You're always like this," she began. "Sacrificing yourself for your sister. She's fine you know, if you leave her here for tonight,"

"I'm fine," Tsuno answered, his face void from any emotions.

Hana raised an eyebrow, "And yet I can see blood coming out from your bandages." She looked at the Head of Maneki. "Put her down and let me redress your wound."

She went to a nearby cabinet and took out a first aid kit. "And you're in the Inuzuka household, so you better follow what I say," she smiled.

Soon, Hana began working on Tsuno's wound. He sat on the couch, Tsubasa's head resting on his thigh as Hana cleaned his injury. "Like I thought, you moved too much. Your wound is open." Hana told him.

"It's a long time since I've been here," Tsuno said, changing the subject.

Hana smiled, "Sure is." She looked at the deep gash on his stomach. "What happened?"

Tsuno didn't reply her and Hana continued cleaning his wound. "You wouldn't even tell your old teammate?" she tried again. "Did you find someone else you can trust?" Hana looked at him.

They both looked into each other eyes, his golden ones and her brown ones. Then he sighed. "They told me," Tsuno began. "that they want all the clan members to live in Sand, like before."

"But your family's been here ever since Konoha opened," Hana frowned.

"I objected." Tsuno continued. "They wanted to settle it in a fight."

"If you win, they'd follow you?"

Tsuno nodded. "There was no other choice. But Akira, the son of the Head there, met me before our match." He paused and looked at his sleeping sister.

"Was he scared that you'd beat him?" Hana asked.

"He said," Tsuno continued. "If I lose, Tsubasa and I can live with Okaasama"

Hana's eyes widened. "Your mother is at Sand?"

Tsuno nodded his head. "I saw her. She's a Sand-nin now."

"That's why you lost on purpose?" Hana questioned. "But your mother left you, and now you want to return to her?"

Tsuno looked at his sister, "Tsubasa grew up without a mother. She should continue growing with our mother now." He ran a hand through his sister long hair, and traced the lines on her face. Then Tsuno turned to Hana.

"That's why, in the meeting, we've decided to move to Sand."

* * *

So, what do you think? Hope that wasn't too confusing. If it was, I'm really sorry.

Anyway, reviews are much loved. Have a nice weekend everyone.


	17. Of Kiba, Tsubasa and Neji

hello, minna-san. my semester break ends today, so i'll be back to college by tomorrow. sigh... it was such a short holiday..

anyway, i don't know how good this chapter will be..but i hope you'd still enjoy it.

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**Cat and Dog**

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Chapter 16

_-_

_Kiba_ _looked around him. He was standing at a clearing, on a bright sunny day. There were two other people there, a small boy and his father. _

_The pair didn't seem like they noticed him. He tried talking to them, but it seemed like he was invisible. The small boy even went through Kiba's body once without realizing he did so._

_Now, as he sat on the grass, watching the father training the son some basic ninja techniques, Kiba wondered why those people looked familiar to him._

_The man had tanned skin, unruly brown hair, warm chocolate eyes and two red marks on his cheeks. He was probably in his late twenties, yet the grin on his face made him look childish._

_The kid possessed the same eye color and unruly hair like his father, except his hair was black. He was tanned too, and had the red marks on his cheeks, and an extra one on his arm._

_Kiba_ _pondered as a thought came to him. Now that he looked at the man carefully, the man does look like him. And not only that, the red mark does show that the man is an Inuzuka. _

_Maybe, if it was by any way possible, the man is an older version of himself._

_And_ _that kid would look like a younger version of himself. Except for his black hair and the extra mark on the arm._

_But_ _since the kid is the man's son, and the man is his adult version of himself, so the kid must have been his kid._

_If this was possible, Kiba added. If._

_This could be a dream, or a premonition, or something, he thought. And since it could be a dream, he might as well ask for a hamburger to appear beside him._

_He turned to his side and indeed, a hamburger appeared beside him on the grass. Kiba smirked, so it is a dream._

_But, back to the man and his son. They were still training and Kiba watched them with interest._

"_Neji," the adult version of him called the boy. "Focus!" the man grinned as he watched the small boy closed his eyes and concentrated._

_Kiba_ _looked at his adult version and the kid. His name is Neji? He smirked as he remembered the long haired, pale Hyuuga Neji. Why would my future self name my kid after him, he thought._

_Then Neji opened his eyes and started grinning to his father. "I can sense! I did it!"_

_Adult Kiba laughed. "Okay, so who do you sense coming our way?"_

"_Mom!"_ _Little Neji said excitedly._

_The present Kiba looked around the clearing when he heard what his future son had said. Since he had already seen his older version of self, see his own son, he might as well see the woman his adult self shared his life with._

_But_ _he didn't sense or see anyone else coming to the clearing. Kiba turned to face the future him and the kid._

"_Why don't you try and track her down?" Older Kiba said to little Neji. The boy nodded his head and began running towards the woods._

_The present Kiba, and the older Kiba, waited and watched a few minutes later, the little boy coming back into the clearing, holding a woman's hand._

_The present Kiba watched carefully as the woman and Neji neared the future Kiba. "See, I found her!" Neji said proudly. The woman laughed and future Kiba ruffled his son's hair. "Good job."_

_Then he turned to the woman. She was a tall and slim woman. Her long black hair was tied into a low ponytail and her golden eyes gleamed in the sunlight. She looked as old as the future Kiba, but just like him, the smile on her face retained her youth._

_The present Kiba's eyes widened. He had a feeling he knew who the woman was, but he didn't want to believe it._

"_You're getting rusty," the older Kiba teased the woman. "Couldn't even hide yourself properly,"_

_The woman elbowed him playfully, "I was being easy. I wanted to make you look cool in front of Neji," she joked._

"_Whatever," older Kiba said, rolling his eyes. He had a smile on his face as he turned to his son. "C'mon, let's go home."_

_Neji_ _grinned and nodded his head as his father carried the boy on his back. The present Kiba watched the family walked back together, still in disbelief._

"_Ne, ne," Neji said, looking down at his father. "Can I really bring both my dog and cat to school with me?"_

_The woman laughed. "Of course". Older Kiba grinned, "You'd be the first in the family." He looked up to his son, "You'd be carrying the legendary Inuzuka Kiba's and Maneki Tsubasa's names, so make us proud, sport!"_

_The woman nodded her head and little Inuzuka Neji grinned. "Okay!" he said, excitedly._

_The present Kiba stood there dumbfounded. The words that his adult self said kept ringing in his ears._

"…_legendary Inuzuka Kiba's and Maneki Tsubasa's…"_

"_So it is her…" he said to himself._

_Xxx_

"Nooooo!!!!!!" Kiba shouted as he opened his eyes and sat up on his bed. He blinked his eyes when he saw the familiar room of his and he sighed.

_It was a dream. A dream. A dream._

Kiba frowned. "What a disgusting dream," he said and shivered as he remembered what he saw in his dream.

Him and Tsubasa? A family? A-A k-kid??!

Kiba shivered again at the thought. _Disgusting._ He looked around for his alarm clock. It read 7.20 am to him and Kiba began to remember the events that happened the night before.

His face turned red when he remembered what he had done.

_And_ _I had a dream about her too…and she's sleeping downstairs…_

His eyes widened. _Wait, she's downstairs…shit!_ He jumped off his bed, rushed to wash his face and quickly stepped down the stairs.

"What was the screaming for?" His sister's voice greeted him just as he reached the first floor. Kiba looked around for Tsubasa.

Inuzuka Hana continued sipping her coffee as she raised an eyebrow at her brother. She turned back to the kitchen while Kiba looked around the living room. "She went back," Hana told him.

Kiba paused and turned to his sister, eyebrows furrowed as he followed her to the kitchen. "When?"

"Yesterday night," Hana answered simply. The two siblings entered the kitchen and saw their mother. Kiba greeted his mother and looked at his older sister.

"Then, why didn't you wake me up?"

Hana turned, "And have you argue with her in the middle of the night?"

Kiba's face turned red. "That won't happen!" He looked away, suddenly feeling embarrassed. "I could've walked her back" he mumbled.

Tsume looked up from her coffee. "He came to pick her up, didn't he?"

Hana kept quiet but Kiba blinked. "He?"

"You noticed Okaasan?" Hana asked as she sat beside her mother. Tsume nodded her head. "It's been a long time since I sensed him."

Kiba furrowed his eyebrows. He didn't like to be kept in the dark. "Who?"

Tsume looked at her son. "Your sister old teammate. The Maneki girl's brother."

Kiba blinked his eyes. "Tsubasa's brother…" he paused and looked at his sister, "your old teammate?"

Hana nodded her head. "Yup"

Kiba let the information sink in. Then,

"EH??!!"

xxx

Shino and Hinata watched Kiba carefully. He looked pale, as if he had seen a ghost. The three of them were in a café, having lunch together after their training.

When Kiba arrived that morning, he wasn't his usual self. He was quiet, and seemed to be in deep thinking.

"Kiba-kun…" Hinata called out. Kiba looked up and met the Hyuuga's creamy eyes. "Yeah?"

"I-Is everything okay?" she asked, a little worried.

"I'm fine," Kiba nodded his head and continued eating his meal. Shino looked at him. "You're eating those green beans you hate," he pointed out.

Kiba paused and looked at his spoon. He looked a little disgusted and pushed the plate away. "Okay, I'm not fine," he confessed.

"What happened?" Hinata asked, in her soft voice.

Kiba frowned and recalled back the event that morning.

"_He was my teammate," Hana nodded her head. _

_Kiba_ _furrowed his eyebrows. "But I know your teammates," he said. He had met his sister's teammates countless times, and he had never seen Maneki Tsuno with them._

_Hana_ _looked at her brother. "You might not remember well, but the group you know is actually my second group. They transferred me when I was 13. Before that, Tsuno and I were in the same group."_

_Kiba_ _looked surprised. "And he's been here, before?"_

_The older Inuzuka sibling nodded. "I didn't like him in the beginning, because I thought it was obvious for cats and dogs. But he scolded me and said that we are humans, so it was stupid to hate each other for no reason."_

_Hana_ _smiled. "That opened my eyes more. It was the Third's idea to place us together, and we did get along fine. But then, the Maneki and our clan couldn't take it well," _

"_Because you're both cat and dog?"_

_She nodded her head, "Well yeah, but mostly because we are first born, which technically means we will take over as head of clans in the future."_

"_So?"_

"_So," Hana paused. "By putting us in the same team, the advisors and elders of the clans were scared that we might get involve, and it would threaten the clan, especially that Tsuno was already the Head at that time, despite the young age."_

"_Involve?" Kiba raised an eyebrow._

"_You know, romantically," Hana said. Kiba furrowed his eyebrows. "That's disgusting."_

_Hana_ _and Tsume exchanged glances. "Yeah then the Third asked Arai-san and Okaasan to promise him something." Hana continued._

"_Which is?" Kiba asked, glancing at his mother who listened intently without saying a word._

"_That unity between clans is important," Hana explained. "So if it didn't work with the first borns, it will with the seconds."_

_Kiba_ _looked up. "Tsubasa and me?"_

_Hana_ _nodded. "You both are not going to take over, so it's okay for you to get involve—"she was cut off when Kiba coughed. "W-what?!" he asked, surprised._

_Tsume_ _smirked. "Why do you think none of the advisors, including me didn't object when Tsunade placed you and the girl in the same team, and use the binding jutsu on you?"_

_Kiba_ _thought about it for a second. "So this has been planned for years?"_

_Hana_ _nodded. "And by the looks of it, things are going well,"_

_Kiba's_ _face turned red, "What's that supposed to mean?"_

"_I think you know what I mean," Hana smiled._

Hinata and Shino were silent after Kiba finished telling them his story. The Inuzuka ran a hand through his hair, "Then I remembered that Tsunade-sama had mentioned about a Maneki and Inuzuka getting along before…"

He frowned and crossed his arms, "It's disgusting that they've been planning to get me and Tsubasa _involved _and _unified,_" he emphasized on those words.

"But hasn't it already happened?" Shino asked. Kiba shot him a glance. "And what does that mean?"

"One of the bugs told me that you were at the clearing with her yesterday night," Shino told Kiba and watched in amusement as the dog master turned the shade of red.

"Nothing happened!"

"I'm sure." Shino answered, aloof. Hinata smiled, "But Kiba-kun, you don't like it?"

Kiba looked at her, "About this whole plan? Of course not!" he frowned. "They think that they can play with us and make us fall for each other?" He rolled his eyes, "This is like an arrange marriage! And we're still young!"

"But it is happening, isn't it?" Shino asked. Kiba narrowed his eyes, "I don't like her, if that's what you're thinking."

"I'm not," Shino replied, "But since you said it, so I take it as a yes."

"Damn it, I don't like her!" Kiba repeated, angry.

He continued, "How would you like it if you find out that your life has been planned by some other people?! That you're expected to…_unified_…with someone whom they _throw_ at you forcefully, just for the sake of the whole village?!"

Hinata kept quiet, loss for words, but Shino continued. "You sound like you're angry that those feelings for her didn't appear naturally,"

"W-what?" Kiba raised an eyebrow, "What feelings?! There are no feelings! Don't you get it?! It's like my life had been controlled! What am I, an experiment?"

"Putting us in the same team, having us fight, punish us with that stupid jutsu, made us become close and then bringing in the whole Maneki clan for kicks," Kiba continued. "That's so like them to make this into a whole drama."

Shino looked at his teammate, "So you think the kiss was planned too?"

The question left Kiba unguarded and it took him a few seconds to prevent himself from flushing red. Hinata looked a little surprised, "You kissed Tsubasa-chan, Kiba-kun?" she asked, a smile on her face.

Kiba looked away, looking at the people passing by outside from the window. Then he nodded his head slowly. "After learning about all of these, yeah," he said slowly. "Maybe it was planned." There was a sense of disappointment in his voice, and his teammates noticed it.

Hinata smiled, Kiba could see it from her reflection in the window. "But you know, Kiba-kun," she started.

"They could throw the conditions at you, and planned it. But like a matchmaker, I guess," Hinata tried to explain. "They can plan, but it depends on the two people whether it would work or not,"

"And you two seem to make it work,"

Kiba narrowed his eyes, "Why does it feel like you're insinuating that I like Tsubasa?"

"Because you do," Shino said simply. Kiba gritted his teeth. "Yaro! You want a fight is it?!" he stood up and grabbed Shino's collar. The latter didn't even flinch.

"S-stop it Kiba-kun!" Hinata interrupted. "Ah!" her eyes widened and she pointed at the window and both Kiba and Shino turned.

Hyuuga Neji was standing outside, looking at them through the window. He made a gesture for the three of them to come out.

Kiba frowned as he released Shino and tried to block the image of the young boy he saw in his dream. _Che, they might have as well interfered with my dream too._

The three of them met Neji and Kiba looked somewhere else, not wanting to face the young jounin, fearing the images from the dream will haunt him. He needs to prove himself that he didn't, hasn't and will not be caught in the stupid plan the Hokage made on him.

"W-What is it, Neji-niisan?" Hinata asked, sounding a little worried when she saw how serious Neji looked.

"Have any of you seen Maneki Tsubasa?" Neji asked. Kiba looked up and met Neji's eyes and he frowned. "Why are you directing the question at me?!"

"I'm not," Neji frowned. "I'm asking in general."

"No," Shino said and Hinata shook her head. "Why?"

"We just received a news that she is missing," Neji explained. Kiba's eyes widened a little, surprised.

"W-what happened? When?" Hinata asked, worried. Neji looked at his cousin, "I'm not sure about the details, but her family couldn't find her and her cat since morning. They couldn't trace her scent either,"

"If you have any information on her, please let me know," Neji said and excused himself.

"L-Let's go find her," Hinata said. Shino nodded his head and looked at Kiba, "You're coming?"

Kiba thought about it. Why would she run away? Could this be part of the Hokage's plan?

"No," he answered. "I'm not gonna look for her."

"W-why?" Hinata asked, surprised. Kiba turned around and walked away. "This could just be part of their plan to get me _involved_, and I am not going to fall for it."

He started walking away and ignoring Hinata's calls. Then he heard a shifting sound and saw Shino standing in front of him. "What?" Kiba asked.

"Aren't you worried about her?" Shino asked.

Kiba narrowed his eyes, "What has gotten into you? Asking this sort of question."

"Answer me," Shino said.

Kiba glared at his teammate and walked away, leaving Shino's question unanswered.

"Kiba!" Shino called out. The dog master didn't turn to look and continued walking away.

"What should we do?" Hinata asked. Shino looked at her, "Let him be. He'll come to his senses. If he doesn't," Shino paused, "I'm sure there are many who would want to punch them into him."

* * *

um yes, you can throw the rotten tomatoes at me. I didn't even put Tsubasa in this chapter. hides away

I'm going to focus on Kiba (and his feelings) more, so um, don't be expecting Tsubasa in the next..few chapters. okay, you can throw the tomatoes now..

but do leave a review k? it'll make my college blues go away...

have a nice weekend everyone!


	18. A slap in the head

hello minna-san. the first week of college has already started for me, and i'm writing this now as i'm on my way back to campus from the weekend break. this week alone i had three assignments to finish. it's a miracle i was able to post this chap. pray for me that i won't be busy so i can continue posting chapters!

anyway, here's the latest one. enjoy.

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**Cat and Dog**

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Chapter 17

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"_Do you like her?" Hana asked him._

Kiba continued walking, clenching his fist angrily. Damn everyone. Damn everyone.

"_Nah," he said, grinning. "She's a cat."_

He passed by everyone hurriedly. What was this, a game to all of them? Were they making fun of him? Mocking him?

"Eh, Kiba?" he heard someone called his voice. He recognized the scent as Chouji. Shikamaru was with him as well. "Are you looking for her too?" he asked. Kiba frowned. Why is everyone assuming that he would look for Tsubasa?

"Why are you looking for her?" he asked Chouji back. Chouji blinked his eyes. Shikamaru raised an eyebrow. "Why we're looking for her?" Chouji furrowed at Kiba curiously. "What kind of question is that?" he asked. "Everyone's looking for her. The Hokage's looking too,"

Kiba frowned. "Yeah I bet she is," he said sarcastically. Chouji and Shikamaru looked confused and was about to ask something else when another person neared them.

"Hey," Sho greeted them. Behind him, Kenji stood, looking at them for a few feet away. The red headed chuunin looked at Kiba, "Inuzuka, I was really hoping if you could—"

"Help you out and try to find her scent" Kiba finished the sentence for him. Sho looked surprised and then smiled and nodded his head. "Yeah, did you try?"

"I didn't." Kiba answered. He was getting irritated from these people expecting him to find Tsubasa. Somehow Sho noticed it, "Is that okay?" Kiba looked away, thinking of what he should say. But Sho nodded his head quickly, "Ah, it's fine. Thank you anyway." He excused himself.

Kiba watched as Sho walked towards Kenji and muttered something to the latter. Kenji glanced up at him and narrowed his eyes when their eyes met, but Kiba didn't reply.

"Do we even need to ask?" Chouji asked, raising an eyebrow. Kiba looked at him annoyed. "What?"

Shikamaru sighed, "And I thought Ino was troublesome." Kiba narrowed his eyes. "_What?_"

Chouji looked at him confused. "It's rather surprising for someone like you who know her quite well to be this calm when she is missing."

Kiba didn't reply him. He admitted he did feel a rush inside of him when he heard what Neji told him earlier that day. But he didn't want to give in to that emotion.

It was all a plan. It's a plan. A plan. He kept telling himself that.

"Naruto went to look for her too," Shikamaru said. Kiba furrowed his eyebrows. Naruto doesn't even know Tsubasa.

"Naruto's just overreacting. He was scared that it was something like Sasuke's." Chouji explained. "Anyway, we'll see you later Kiba,"

Kiba watched as Chouji and Shikamaru continued on his search. He didn't get why his friends would be so worked up to find Tsubasa.

Were they part of the plan?

Kiba let out a huge sigh and messed up his hair, frustrated. "Damn you Tsubasa, this is all because of you," he hissed angrily as he walked away.

Xxx

"_She's not just a cat you know," Hana said. Kiba turned to face his sister. "Hm?"_

"_We're not just dogs," Hana continued saying. She smiled to her brother._

"_We're humans," she said. "We just have different type of blood, born in different families, different culture."_

"_If you can accept that with your other friends, you should treat her the same way too."_

Kiba closed his eyes and concentrate hard. He knows her scent; he's been glued to her for so many times that her scent had somewhat became a part of him.

He focused himself. In his mind, he imagined her scent as a small red string. There were many strings in the village, but none of it was red. None of it was the one he was looking for.

Kiba bit his lip. He concentrated even harder. If she wasn't in the village, then she must've been somewhere in the country. She left earlier that day, even by the fastest means of traveling; she would still be somewhere in the country.

Thousands and thousands of strings, he could see them and he kept on looking. She has to be somewhere in the country. Somewhere…even a small trace of smell would do.

Kiba opened his eyes and let out a sigh. "It's no use…" he frowned. He couldn't locate her anywhere in the country. There was no way she could leave so fast, even to get to the nearest country; the Sand needs a day at least.

He bit his bottom lip and looked at his companion beside him on the rooftop of the village's water tower.

"Akamaru, do we have any other way to find her?" he asked. Akamaru looked up and shook his head. Kiba nodded his head and patted his dog, "Yeah, I thought so…"

He looked up at the clear blue sky and thought deeply. Why did he give in and try to look for her anyway? All he wanted to do was to return home but he knows his sister will lecture him for being ignorant.

And the fact that he is somewhat worried and curious about Tsubasa lead him there too.

_I'm being pulled into this plan and I can't even get myself out huh?_

"Hello there,"

Kiba looked down below when he heard and sensed a few people standing beside the tower. There were three scents from those people that were familiar to him.

"Hey there," he heard a woman's voice and looked carefully. Then his eyes widened when he saw the three Maneki triplets talking to a couple of guys.

"You guys are the famous Maneki triplets aren't you?" one of the guys asked.

"The dangerous, cunning and intelligent spies," another guy said. The triplets laughed.

"That's us," the oldest of the triplets, Mei smiled.

"Dangerous, cunning, intelligent and _beautiful_," another man said and wolf-whistled. "Are there anything else that you're not?"

Rei, the second of the triplets giggled, "I don't know, what do you think?"

"We think you guys are perfect," a man said and Kiba watched him looking at the triplets from hair to toes, his eyes looking like a hungry wolf. "In every way…" the guy continued.

The triplets looked at each other and smiled.

"Perfect," another nodded his head. "Maneki girls are just perfect,"

The triplets laughed, "Why thank you," Fei, the youngest of the triplets laughed.

Kiba felt disgusted watching the triplets.

"Hey, so I heard your cousin ran away," Another guy said and Kiba listened intently.

The triplets' expressions changed from happy to annoyed. "That stupid girl," Mei answered, crossing her pale arms across her chest.

"She ran away after she heard that her family is moving to Sand," Rei continued. "What a chicken,"

Kiba's eyes widened. What? They were moving to Sand?

And that's why she left?

"So the whole Maneki family are moving to the Sand?" one of the men asked. Fei nodded her head, "That's right. That Tsubasa is childish. If I were here, I'd been ecstatic to see my own mother,"

"But then again," Rei added. "The mother is a whack in the head, I would be ashamed to see her," she laughed. Fei laughed as well, "That's true."

"The mother is crazy?"

Mei shook her head, "She was, then a Sand-nin helped cured her and feeling grateful, she stayed there and lived with him."

"But that's a shame," a man said. "And I was looking forward to see how Tsubasa will look like when she's grown up,"

The other men nodded their heads, "That's right, that's right. She's got the looks, but her body hasn't fully developed yet," a man said and laughed.

Kiba frowned and narrowed his eyes. He doesn't like the way the conversation was going.

"But when she does," a man grinned and wolf-whistled while doing an hourglass shaped on air with his hands. The other men laughed. "Oh yes, she'd look just as hot as you girls,"

The triplets crossed their arms and looked at them angrily, as if they were insulted.

"Don't place us on the same level with that girl," Mei said. "She's a disgrace to the family."

"Coward, running away from nothing. The family doesn't even need her. She's a traitor, befriending and sticking up for dogs." Rei continued.

"She must've gone cookoo like her mother too," Fei smirked.

Kiba bit his lips and clenched his fist. He can feel his blood boiling in his ears. How dare they talk about Tsubasa like that?

Xxx

"Mou…I'm hungry already…" Naruto frowned as he continued walking. "Where can she be?"

Sakura wiped the sweats on her forehead. She, Naruto and their friends had been looking for Tsubasa since early that day, and now they still have no idea where she can be.

"I wonder if the Hokage knows anything…"

"Hinata-chan didn't find her too…" Naruto said, frowning. Hinata looked down as she walked behind Naruto. "G-gomen ne,"

Naruto quickly turned around and grinned. "No no! That's okay! We didn't find her too," he said, trying to lift up Hinata's spirit. "We will, we will, ne?"

Hinata smiled softly and nodded her head. Beside her, Shino looked up and his eyes met someone.

"Kiba," he called out softly when he saw the said person standing in front of a group of people near the water tower.

Naruto looked up, "where?"

He turned his head and saw Kiba standing up in front of three women, looking angry. From where they were standing, a few feet away, they can hear Kiba's angry shouting.

"How can you even talk about her like that when you don't even know how she really is?!"

One of the three women narrowed her eyes at Kiba, "Why do you care so much, punk?"

"I know her far better than any of you, so you have no right to judge her!"

"You like her, don't you?" another woman spoke. Kiba looked taken aback, then continued shouting back when he regained his composure.

"Tsubasa changed my perception on your family. If you think she's the black sheep, you should look at yourself. Those good looks of yours must be a cover to hide your disgusting selves."

The oldest of the women narrowed her eyes and extended her long fingers to touch Kiba and slap him, but the others stopped her.

"Don't touch _it_," one of them spoke. Kiba smirked. "Why? Are you afraid these men will see your true colors?"

The women narrowed their eyes dangerously, but Kiba didn't flinch.

"W-we should stop him," Hinata said looking at Shino worriedly. Shino nodded his head. "It would probably be worse than when he and Tsubasa fought before,"

Naruto frowned, "But I want to see them fight—Ittai!" He shouted and rubbed his sore head that Sakura had just punched. "K, K I'll stop him." The blonde shinobi said.

"Oi Kiba!" Naruto shouted his name and neared the group of people. Kiba didn't even turn to look at him, he was busy glaring back into the triplets eyes.

"Let's go," Shino pulled his arms. Kiba pulled him away. "Get lost,"

Naruto tried to get in between Kiba and the triplets. He forced a smile at the triplets. "We shall be going then." He said and pushed Kiba away.

Kiba tried to get himself away. He glared at Naruto, "Get lost." He repeated. Naruto glanced at Shino before turning back to Kiba and grinned maliciously.

He looked at Kiba seriously. "I can conjure up my clone here and send him to Tsunade-obaachan so fast that the next thing you realize is that you are glued to these women like what happened with you and Tsubasa-chan."

That had gotten Kiba's attention. He frowned as he glared at the triplets for one last time, before turning away and walking to where his friends were.

"Okay, that's settled," Naruto said as he, Kiba and Shino reached where Hinata and Sakura stood.

"What were you thinking, trying to pick a fight," Shino asked him. Kiba looked away, frowning. "They were pissing me off."

"K-Kiba-kun, are you alright?" Hinata asked. Kiba frowned, still feeling angry but nodded his head. Naruto nodded his head too, "Good good, now let's continue looking for Tsubasa and forget about all of them." He pushed Kiba to walk forward but Kiba pushed him away and turned to face him.

"Why are you so eager to find her?" he asked Naruto. The latter blinked his eyes confused. "Huh?"

"You don't even know her and you're acting as if you've known her your whole life," Kiba frowned, crossing his arms.

Naruto looked at his companions curiously and then turned back to Kiba. He grinned. It annoyed Kiba and he looked away.

"Idiot, she's your friend right? So that makes her my friend too."

Kiba let the information sink in his head and turned to face Naruto again.

"I don't know her as well as you do, but she is an important member of the village and to my friends too, so those count for me." Naruto answered.

Kiba thought about Naruto's answer. Somehow he felt like he's been slapped. He felt stupid all of the sudden.

Here he was, musing about his life being planned without his consent, and there were his friends looking for an important person for him while he was acting oblivious about it.

"Argh," Kiba said as he messed up his hair, frustrated. He turned around. "Come on Akamaru," he called for his dog as he walked away.

"Where are you going?" He heard Shino asked behind him.

To go to find her, he wanted to answer. But he didn't had the chance to say it when Neji appeared in front of him, stopping him from walking away.

Neji looked at him curiously and at the people behind him. Then his eyes met Kiba's again.

"The Hokage is looking for you," he said, pointing to Kiba, Shino and Hinata.

"Did she find her?" Naruto asked, hopefully. Neji shook his head.

"No, but there's a new mission for you guys," the jounin said, looking at Kiba. The latter messed up his hair again and walked past Neji, Hinata and Shino following after him.

Neji smirked to himself as he watched Kiba's retreating back. He saw Kiba clenching his fist, frustrated, as he walk and Neji knew the guy has finally come to his senses.

* * *

okay, that's all for now. reviews are loved!

enjoy your sunday minna-san!


	19. Those You Shouldn't Have Left Behind

hey guys!

yes i know it's been a long time since i last updated. and i'm sorry it took me this long. i got caught up in life (yes, lame excuse) and my plot bunnies left me due to my procrastination to write this chapter. again i am sorry.

but anyway, enjoy this chapter k?

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**Cat and Dog**

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Chapter 18

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"You wanted to see us, Tsunade-sama?" Hinata asked when the three of them entered the Hokage's office.

Tsunade looked up from the pile of paperwork on her desk and nodded at the team. "Ah yes, I have a special mission for the three of you." She said and looked around her pile of work.

She pulled out a file from her stack and held it up for the three of them to see. "There's a group of bandits here I want you to catch." She said as she passed the file to Shino. "They've been robbing many cities lately so the Mayors are asking our help to catch them."

Shino nodded his head. "Where are they last seen?"

"In Fukai. They are most likely heading to Minami next." Tsunade informed them. She nodded her head and looked at the team. "Then, you may all go after you finish packing."

Shino and Hinata nodded their heads, bowed and turned to leave. But Kiba was still standing there, staring at the Fifth. Tsunade realized this and looked at him straight in the eyes. "What is it?" she asked.

"It's your plan isn't it?" Kiba asked.

"Kiba," Shino warned him. Tsunade raised her hand, gesturing it was okay. "My plan for what?"

"To get me and Tsubasa together. It was your plan to get the two clans in good terms." Kiba said. His eyes were empty and he looked as if he's been possessed. Tsunade knew he was possessed, by his own questions that were haunting him.

She smiled. "Yes, I did plan on getting both clans to be at peace, but never did think to match the two of you up," she smirked.

Kiba narrowed his eyes, still not convinced.

Tsunade looked at him. "You're thinking that I planned on getting the two of you stuck, make you become close and then sends her away so you'd think she's lost and try to find her and confesses?"

Kiba didn't say a word. He was frowning.

"Grow up," Tsunade shook her head. "This isn't a fairy tale romantic story. It's not even supposed to be romantic." She told him. "I placed that jutsu to teach you a leasson, and if you're getting along, well that's good. I didn't plan on making Tsubasa to run away. If I have, I wouldn't have sent a group of jounin to look for her." Tsunade said and rubbed her temples.

"Besides, I was the one who wanted the Maneki to move to Sand."

Kiba's eyes widened slightly at the confession.

"It's better for the clan to be at one place rather than being separated." She explained. "Besides, it will strengthen our alliance with the Sand." Tsunade looked at him seriously. "I never planned to match you up with Tsubasa." She smirked. "You're too young for that."

"But perhaps you should accept that feeling inside of you rather than making excuses that you're caught in an imaginary trap and blaming others for the existence of that _feeling._"

Tsunade smiled and nodded her head, "All of you can go now."

Kiba didn't say a word and allowed Shino to drag him away as he start thinking on the Hokage's words.

Xxx

"We'll find her."

Kiba blinked and looked around. "Huh?"

Hinata smiled, "I said, we'll find her," she said and smiled convincingly. Kiba nodded his head slowly. "Um," he said as he continued walking. He thought about what Hinata and Tsunade had said.

If he's going there to look for her, does that means he likes her? Sure, everyone else are looking for her but somehow he has a feeling his effort would seem different than the rest.

And everyone's already assuming he does, but does he really?

He's encountered with many kunoichis before. Hinata is one who is close to him and he does hold feeling for her, but he thinks of her more like a sister. And then there are Sakura, Ino and Tenten. He likes them too, but he was sure he doesn't _like like_ any of them.

For him, he thinks, to like someone, the body would be all tingling, the cheeks would be all red, the skin would be all sweaty and the heart would beat faster than normal.

But he hasn't experience any of that. Not with Hinata, Sakura, Ino, Tenten. And especially not with Tsubasa. So there was no way he would be fond of that girl. Besides, the Hokage did say he was still young…

_But then…what about the kiss?_

Kiba paused and thought about that. That's right. The kiss. He hasn't counted that in.

_And didn't you plan on finding her before the Hokage called you for a mission?_

Kiba thought about that too. He remembered. He remembered thinking of going to look for Tsubasa. So…what does this mean? That he does like her?

"Kiba, are you listening?" Shino asked him, breaking Kiba from his thoughts.

Kiba turned his head and blinked, "Huh?"

Shino furrowed his eyebrows. He found it irritating when people didn't pay attention to what he was saying and expecting him to repeat his words. "I said," he frowned, "Pack your stuff, and meet at the gate in an hour."

"Right," he nodded his head. "So I'll see you guys later then," he said and was about to turn around when Shino stopped him. Kiba looked at him curiously. "What?"

Shino pointed over Kiba's shoulder. He turned around and his eyes widened when he saw one of the Maneki's advisor, Arai standing not too far away behind him. Kiba furrowed his eyebrows quizzically. Hinata smiled at him, "I think he wants to talk to you," Kiba turned to face her, "I don't think there's anything to talk about."

"Just go," she said, giving him a slight push from the back. Kiba frowned at her, but Hinata smiled and Shino nodded approvingly.

Kiba walked towards the older man, feeling awkward. He rubbed the end of his nose when he reached the older Maneki. "Um, hello?" he started. Arai looked at him and bowed his head. Kiba did the same, still feeling awkward.

"I am here to apologize for the commotion the other day," the older man said, reminding Kiba of the day the Maneki family members insulted him. Kiba nodded his head, "Ah that," he said and smiled, "It's okay."

Arai nodded his head, "Tsubasa would've wanted me to apologize," he told Kiba. The latter looked at him questioningly. Arai knew he was curious and continued talking. "I've been taking care of Tsubasa since she was born," Arai said, "I know of her plan, her desire to leave the village and become a normal person."

"So you let her run away," Kiba said. "No wonder none of the Manekis are actually looking."

Arai looked at him, "I didn't know she planned to leave this soon." He said. "The others are following Ueno's order not to go look for her."

"And you're following hers too?"

Arai shook his head. "I'm following Tsuno's order." Kiba raised an eyebrow. "Her brother?"

"He thought it was better if she leaves," Arai said. "At least until he fixes all the problems and changes the clan for the better so she won't have any more reason to leave."

Kiba nodded his head, understood. "I see." He took a glimpse at his teammates standing not too far away behind him. "Actually, I am going for a mission today." He wasn't sure if he was saying it to implement or to offer himself to go look for Tsubasa. But Arai nodded his head.

"I see." He was quiet for a moment before continuing. "If you ever come across Tsubasa," he paused. "Please tell her of what I have said to you"

Kiba nodded his head. "I will." He watched the smile that crept on the older man's face and somehow felt that the latter had wanted to say more. Somehow Kiba felt like Arai had wanted him to look for Tsubasa and bring her back. But the pride he has as a Maneki and as an older person, kept him from asking for help.

He wanted to say something to the older man, something to make him feel better. He doesn't know why, perhaps it was instinct, not as a dog, but as a human, to help someone feel better.

_And didn't Tsubasa said that before...you should make someone happy..._

But before he could open his mouth, he could hear chatters not too far away from him and sensed a few familiar scents.

"…And I heard if a Maneki falls in love…"

Kiba turned when he heard a voice behind him. He saw the triplets and the guys he encountered earlier that day walking nearby.

"…every thing around them becomes lucky," the man continued saying, all of them still haven't notice him.

Mei smirked. "That's just a legend. It probably happens in one out f a thousand Mane—" she stopped when she saw Kiba. The others turned and saw him too. The triplets narrowed their eyes angrily when they saw Arai standing near him.

"What are you doing here with him?" Fei asked the older Maneki. "Ueno-sama ordered for any of us not to speak to his kind." She said, looking at Kiba disgustingly. "You're asking him to look for Tsubasa, aren't you?" Mei asked. Arai looked at them, his golden eyes shining seriously. "I did not."

Rei huffed. "I'm sure," she said sarcastically. "I should tell Ueno-sama to drop you as an advisor. You're just as loony as that kid."

Kiba furrowed his eyebrows, he could understand their hatred towards him, but being this rude towards their own elders?

"Hey!" he started, "He's your advisor, respect him!"

The triplets eyed him angrily, "And why should we listen to you, you useless son of—" Fei was cut off when Arai raised his hand. "That's enough." His voice was cold and Kiba felt a shiver run up his spine as he felt the chakra around the older man thickened.

"_We _shall go now," he said looking at Kiba and bid goodbye. He gave a slight cold glance to the triplets before walking away. The triplets frowned at Kiba before glaring at him and following Arai's steps, the men with them blinking on quizzically.

Kiba clenched his fist as he saw them walked away and he shouted. "Hey!!"

The Manekis stopped walking and turned to look at him, the triplets narrowing their eyes with anger while Arai looked curious. Kiba grinned. "I'll find her and bring her back." He shouted to them. "Just wait for her return!"

The triplets narrowed their eyes even more and Fei would've walked up back to him to argue, if her sisters didn't hold her back. Arai smiled slightly at Kiba and bowed his head before turning around and walking away.

Kiba watched them leave and felt satisfied with himself. "Well done," Shino said, walking up to him. "But you do know that we are going out for a mission. And it's not related with Tsubasa."

Kiba eyed him, "You just had to ruin the moment, didn't you."

Xxx

An hour later while Kiba walked towards the gate of Konoha, he sensed a familiar scent around him. He looked around and didn't see anyone with the same scent. He furrowed his eyebrows. The scent was so familiar, it was the same scent he had sensed at his house earlier that morning.

It was then while he was searching, Akamaru barked and Kiba turned and saw a huge white cat looking at him. He remembered the cat.

The cat belonged to the Maneki's family and he remembered Tsubasa addressing him as Juuno. He was her brother's cat. It was then it hit him and Kiba looked around for Maneki Tsuno. He found the latter a few moments later, looking back at him from the top of a building.

Kiba looked at him curiously and bowed his head slightly to greet the man. Tsuno replied the same and then Kiba noticed the smile on his face as he nodded his head at Kiba.

As if sending Kiba a good luck wish for his mission.

Or as permission for Kiba to look for his sister.

Kiba didn't know which one so he nodded and smiled back in return before bidding goodbye and continued his way to the gate. He reached the gate of Konoha a few minutes later and saw his teammates were already waiting for him.

"You are late," Shino told him.

"I'm here already," Kiba said, rolling his eyes.

Hinata smiled. "You looked relax Kiba-kun," she pointed out.

Kiba laughed, "I guess."

Shino eyed him curiously. "What did you do?"

"Nothing," Kiba said and began walking out of the gate. "Let's go then."

He didn't feel like telling them he had meet Tsubasa's brother on the way. He didn't feel like telling them the older Maneki had nodded and smiled at him.

"Wait Kiba," Shino called. Kiba turned around, "What is it—" he paused when he saw a figure running towards them. Kiba looked intently and saw that the figure was Kenji.

"Thank goodness I made it in time," Kenji said running out of breath.

"Is something wrong?" Hinata asked. Kenji shook his head as he panted. Then he raised his hand and pointed to Kiba. "Can I talk to you, personally?"

Kiba blinked his eyes but nodded anyway. He stepped further from his teammates and Kenji followed him. "Before Tsubasa left," Kenji began. "She came to see us."

"She begged us not to look for her, but to pretend as if we had no idea she went missing."

Kiba listened, "So you know where she is now?"

Kenji shook his head. "No, she wouldn't say because she was scared they would suspect us." He smirked and pushed his bangs away. "Sho doesn't know I'm doing this."

"Both of us love Tsubasa dearly and Sho's the type who would listen and do anything she'd ask if it makes her happy." Kenji explained. "But I'm not like that."

"I know she wants to leave her one day, but now is not the time." Kenji said, for once Kiba saw the seriousness and the maturity in his eyes. "I want her to return and only leave when she is really ready. I don't want her to regret."

"Then?" Kiba asked.

"I can't go look for her because Sho will stop me," Kenji told him. "But this is all I can do." Kiba watched him pulling out his necklace with the cylinder metal pendant that is just like the one Tsubasa has.

Kenji held the necklace in his palm and showed it to Kiba, "My uncle has the ability to make this type of necklace. The necklaces are our way of finding each other."

"When we blow into the pendant, we'll tell the others of our whereabouts. Similarly, when someone blows into the pendant, we will know of his or her whereabouts."

"So you know where she is?" Kiba asked.

Kenji shook his head. "I would, if she were to blow into her pendant," he said. "But there is another way to know."

"When the people who have the same necklaces are in near vicinity, the pendant will feel warm."

Kiba furrowed his eyebrows, "So it'd turn warm if Tsubasa is nearby?" Kenji nodded his head, "That's why I want you to have it," he said, extending the necklace in his palm to Kiba. The latter looked surprised.

"There's a slim chance of finding her with this way, but this is the only way I know how to help." Kenji said, "So take the necklace."

Kiba looked hesitant at first, but took it anyway. The pendant felt cold in his hand. He placed it around his neck and hid it under his jacket. "Thanks." Kenji nodded his head and Kiba realized how relieved the former was after giving him the necklace.

"Thank you," Kenji said to him. "And I mean it Kiba, thank you."

Kiba nodded his head. He has to take a mental note of this so he can tells Tsubasa, when he sees her, that she has a lot of people she shouldn't have left behind easily.

* * *

read and review, as always! 

and Merry Christmas & Happy New Year to everyone out there who are celebrating! I think this year i am quite proud of myself that i'm continuing this story that i have left on hold for almost two years. and you guys have made me really happy when i saw the reviews went up more than a hundred already. that, i had never expected.

so thank you so much to all of you who have encouraged me to continue writing and may your holidays be filled with good memories and may you guys have a great and wonderful times.

love you all. muahhhxx!!


	20. where are you now?

hello everybody!! yes i know it's been 3 to 4 months since my last chapter and i'm really sorry to make you wait! college got the better of me with assignments and finals and well everything. but now it's the semester break so i can continue!

i'm really sorry for the long delay. here it is now. enjoy!

* * *

**Cat and Dog**

Chapter 19

"_You have two tasks," the old man told the three of them. Kiba listened patiently while watching the older man who looked nervous to be around them._

_The house, the client's house, they were in, looked like a rundown. The old man himself was pale, thin and balding. He lived alone, his clothes were so shabby, it reminded Kiba of beggars._

"_I-worked as a guard for the Feudal Lord," he began explaining. "My job is to keep the blueprint of the Lord's mansion safely the whole time in fear that someone might steal it and use it to infiltrate his house,"_

"_And?"_ _Neji asked, eyebrows furrowed._

"_The Lord is asking for it now," the old man answered and he looked at the floor as he fidgeted. "B-But, the blue print is not with me anymore." He said, shaking his head._

"_Amakura-san," Kiba spoke, frowning. "What do you mean it's not with you anymore?"_

_Amakura_ _looked up and looked into Kiba's eyes. The latter could see how scared their client was. "A few days ago, a loan shark came and…and took some of my property," he said, one quick glance at his surrounding. "I-I think I might have accidentally given it away,"_

_Neji_ _nodded his head. "The tasks are to find the blueprint and to escort you to the Feudal Lord?" he asked. Amakura nodded his head weakly. _

_Kiba_ _frowned. "Why can't you ask for it?"_

"_No!" Amakura shouted, frightened. "T-they might know that it's the blueprint of the Lord's mansion! It's dangerous!" he explained and turned his head to the other member of the ninjas._

"_That's why I need you to steal it back," he said to Tsubasa. Kiba took a quick glance at the Maneki and saw the girl nodded her head. "I understand," she answered._

_Her golden eyes gleamed as she spoke. "Consider it done."_

xxx

"That's the third one," Kiba said as he stepped out of the building. He took out a folded paper from his pocket and looked at it.

On the piece of paper were boxes of 6 pictures along with descriptions of the bandits they had to catch. Taking out a pen, Kiba marked an X on one of the pictures. He smirked as he looked at the three Xs on his paper.

Akamaru barked beside him and Kiba grinned at the dog as he scratched the dog on its head. "Good job sport," he said and Akamaru licked him in return.

Kiba turned his head around, as his two teammates walked out of the police station. Shino looked at him. "The information we received said the fourth one is in Ishikari."

"That's just the town after," Kiba added. Shino nodded his head. "We'll start moving now,"

Hinata smiled and nodded, "The faster we finish this job, the sooner we can go back,"

Kiba nodded in agreement, but he only half-heartedly agreed with what Hinata said. It's been around 3 weeks already since they left the village, and it had been around 3 weeks too, that he had been looking for Tsubasa.

But unlike the bandits that they caught, he still could not find any trace of the girl.

The necklace that Kenji lent to him was dangling around his neck and the metal pendant felt cold against his chest.

"C'mon then Kiba," Shino said as he walked past him. Kiba nodded his head slowly. "Right,"

_Maybe she's in the next town…_

xxx

"_Can you sense her?" Neji asked him as he turned off his Byakugan. "It didn't work," he explained._

_Kiba furrowed his eyebrows. "Even if I can, why would I want to," he replied. Neji frowned. "Think professionally Kiba, she is a teammate, not an enemy."_

"_It's her problem to go off wondering and got missing, why do we have to be so worked up over it?" Kiba answered back. Why was it any of his concern where the cat girl had gone to._

_The three of them should have been on guard outside of their client's house and were supposed to be planning on how they would break into the loan shark's place and retrieve the blueprint._

_But Tsubasa had been missing since that afternoon and had not returned since. It annoyed Kiba that the girl was being a trouble for them._

"_Just sense for her," Neji said, eyebrows furrowed seriously, his voice deep in demand. Kiba frowned and sighed. "Fine."_

_He closed his eyes. The girl is so dead when she returns, he thought as he concentrated. But just as he began concentrating for the Maneki girl's scent, he sensed it immediately._

_Opening his eyes, he saw Tsubasa walking towards them. Kiba frowned and was about to start another fight with her when Neji cut in._

"_Where were you?" The Hyuuga asked, just as Tsubasa neared them. "You were supposed to be here—" Neji was cut off when Tsubasa handed him a black, long cylinder tube._

"_What's this?" Neji asked but she ignored him as she sat down against a wall, a few feet away from Kiba, her cat in her lap. Then she rummaged through her back pack and took out her water container to drink._

_Neji_ _pulled open the tube's lid and took out the rolled paper inside it. His eyes widened and Kiba furrowed his eyebrows in curiousity. "You took back the blueprint?" Neji asked._

_Kiba_ _turned to look at the Maneki girl and saw her nod. "You could've have informed us, idiot," he told her. Tsubasa's eyes narrowed as she looked at him, but she didn't reply him back._

_Kiba_ _looked at her and noticed that her face and outfit were dirty, her breathing was quick and her hands were shaking. She was tired, her guessed._

"_This is a team work," Neji told her as he rerolled the blueprint. Tsubasa looked at the Hyuuga as she stroked her cat's fur. "Even so, I'd still be the one stealing it, there's no difference,"_

"_We could have helped," Neji said, frowning._

_Tsubasa_ _shrugged, "Nothing worth helping in stealing anyway," she said and Kiba sensed the disappointment in her voice. He took a look at her and then rolled his eyes._

"_Ignore her Neji, she's not worth of your time anyway," he said, glaring at the cat girl._

Xxx

He jumped from tree to tree, his eyes fixed on the figure running on the ground. He took out a shurinken and threw it at the figure.

The man, the fourth bandit they were supposed to catch, paused from running, to avoid the shurinken. The man looked up and sent a flying kunai towards Kiba, which the latter easily avoided.

"Oi, Shino, are you ready?!" Kiba shouted. There was no reply and Kiba looked at the ground and saw his said teammate facing the bandit one on one.

"Cheh," Kiba rolled his eyes. "C'mon Akamaru," he called out his dog as he jumped off the tree and onto the ground, standing exactly behind the bandit.

Kiba looked up and looked at Shino, who was in front of him, guarding the bandit from the front, while Kiba was at the back.

"Oi, you could have told me you were ready," Kiba said to Shino. The latter just shrugged as he focused his attention to the bandit trapped between them.

"Damn you brats," the older man said, looking at them, his hands shook in fear.

"Yeah anyway," Kiba said, looking at the outlaw, taking out his piece of folded paper, "Where's your other friends?" he asked, pointing to two other pictures inside the paper that haven't been marked on.

The bandit took a quick glance at the paper and smirked. "So boss is still free," he said softly to himself. But Kiba heard it. "What's that? One of these is your boss?" he asked, looking at the paper.

"Where are they hiding?" Shino asked. The bandit looked at him, eyebrows furrowed. "And why would I tell you?"

"Lighter punishment by the authority?" Kiba said, shrugging. "But even if you're not willing to cooperate, we can make you to," he said, breaking into his stance, Akamaru in front of him, sharp claws and fangs were visible to see.

In front of him, Shino released his army of bugs which gathered behind him, waiting for his order to attack.

The bandit looked scared for a second but smirked to them, "I can still get out of here," he said, as he moved his fingers quickly.

"You're trapped you know," Kiba told him, unafraid of the hand signals. The bandit glared at him, "You damn punk!" he said as he released a fire jutsu towards him.

But it didn't reach Kiba as the jutsu was blocked by a force field. The bandit looked surprised and tried again. Again, his jutsu flew towards Kiba but halfway through it hit an invisible force and disappeared.

Curious, the bandit walked towards Kiba and felt his body being thrown back by a force. It was then he felt there was a force field around him, keeping him locked in.

"Kuso!" he said as he tried to ran but was thrown back afterwards by the invisible barrier.

Kiba smiled and looked up at the trees and saw Hinata standing on a nearby tree, concentrating on her jutsu, the force field around the bandit.

"Good job Hinata!" Kiba said, smirking.

Xxx

_Neji_ _frowned at the thick atmosphere around him. "Don't be childish, fighting about this,"_

_Tsubasa_ _glared at him, "Then you choose, which road is better to use,"_

_Neji_ _furrowed his eyebrows. "You're fighting over which road we are going to use?" he asked, a slight amusement in his voice. "That's stupid."_

"_See, he said your plan was stupid." Kiba said. "Who would choose the long road anyway,"_

_Tsubasa_ _narrowed his eyes, "As if your idea is any better, the short road is dangerous!"_

"_Is not!"_

"_Is too!"_

"_Let Neji decide then!"_

"_Fine!"_

"_Neji!!"_

"_Neji-senpai!!"_

_Neji_ _took a deep breath. He made a mental note to ask the Godaime later if he would receive an extra payment for having to take care of the two of them._

"_I'm taking the short route." Neji answered._

"_Hah!" Kiba said, looking at Tsubasa proudly. The Maneki looked like she had been slapped on the face. "What?! But the road is dangerous!"_

_Neji_ _nodded, trying to calm himself. "Which would make it harder for anyone to hide and try to ambush us," he answered._

"_But—" Tsubasa was about to continue her objection when Neji cut her off. "We're leaving now," he said, his order absolute._

Xxx

"You're becoming proud." Shino said to Kiba as they were on their way to another town to look for the remaining bandits.

"What?" Kiba asked, raising an eyebrow. Shino looked at him behind his sunglasses but didn't reply back. "Oi!" Kiba called him.

"I think you're anxious," Hinata smiled. Kiba turned to his other teammate, "And why would I be?"

"Because we haven't found any clues on Tsubasa-chan," Hinata said. "I think you want to get this job over quickly so you can look for her," she explained.

Kiba looked away. "No," he said. "I'm just disappointed that the bandits were not even our levels. It's a waste of time."

"That's what I said," Shino spoke, "turning proud."

Kiba glared, "And what the hell is wrong with that?"

Shino didn't answer again and Kiba narrowed his eyes, feeling irritated by the bug boy. "Yaroo…"

"I-I'm sure we'll find her soon," Hinata told him, changing the subject. Kiba looked at the Hyuuga girl who smiled at him. "Do you know where she'd like to go, Kiba-kun?" she asked.

Kiba shrugged. "As if I would ask her such a ques—", he was cut off by Shino.

"We're here," the glasses boy spoke, standing at a cliff and looking below him. "That's Kin."

Kiba followed suit and his eyes widened when he saw the town below.

But that didn't surprised him. What surprised him was the smell of the salty air, the noise of the waves and the image of the sea near the town.

Xxx

"_What the hell is she doing in the carriage with the client?" Kiba asked Neji, feeling annoyed at the situation. It was the night where they were supposed to guard Amakura to deliver his blueprint and both him and Neji were watching the carriage below them as the skipped from tree to tree above._

_Tsubasa_ _on the other hand, was inside the carriage with the client._

"_At least, if he was attacked, there's a guard in there," Neji explained. "Besides, the two of you would probably continue fighting if she was here,"_

_Kiba_ _frowned and focused his attention to the carriage below him. He did not only possess a good nose, but his ears are trained as well. He could hear dialogues going on inside the carriage and he listened._

"_Where would you like to go?" he heard Amakura asked. "I like the ocean," Kiba heard Tsubasa's reply._

_He frowned. "She's not even concentrating," he told Neji. "Neither are you," the latter replied. _

"_I can multi task," Kiba said as he continued listening. _

"_Ah…the festivals, yes, they are fun to attend," he heard Amakura spoke again. "Before I'd go with my late wife and friends,"_

"_I went with my teammates once, in Kin," Tsubasa said. _

"_Ah yes, Kin always host a weeklong festival in the summer," Amakura said. "It's always fun to go to a festival with the people that you care." He paused as he coughed, "Sadly, I can't enjoy them anymore now that—"_

"_Oi Kiba!" Neji shouted and Kiba blinked his eyes. He looked at the carriage on the ground and his eyes widened when he saw a group of bandits had surrounded it._

"_Shit!"_

_Xxx_

"Shit!!" Kiba shouted as he jumped to avoid the attack.

"Kiba, focus!" Shino shouted to him as he launched an attack at the bandit.

Focus? How can he focus when his mind is clouded with the thought of Tsubasa.

They were in the town Kin for almost a week now, and while they were looking for the bandit, he was looking for her as well.

There was something in him that said she was here. The pendant was still cold against his skin, but he had a strong feeling that he was right.

"Kiba-kun!"

He turned at the sound of Hinata shouting his name, just in the nick of time to avoid a jutsu thrown at him. He focused his eyes on the bandit.

"He's tougher than the others," Kiba said to himself. "Now you noticed?" he heard Shino spoke, appearing beside him. "Concentrate idiot," the latter said, as he released a jutsu against the outlaw.

"I know that!" Kiba frowned. "Come on Akamaru!" he called out his dog as Akamaru barked in return, the both of them launched an attack against the bandit.

The bandit laughed as he avoided Kiba's attack. "And you call yourself Leaf Shinobi?" he mocked. "This is three against one!" he laughed again.

Kiba frowned and narrowed his eyes as he retreat back to his teammates. "Oi, I got a plan," he said.

"Thinking far ahead than you," Shino told him and Hinata nodded her head as the two of them moved away. Kiba grinned, that was one thing he liked about his team, they were too synchronized.

"C'mon Akamaru!" Kiba called out. "Beast Bunshin no jutsu!"

Two Kibas appeared and the two of them lunged towards the bandits in opposite directions. "Gatsuuga!"

Two tornadoes-like appeared, surrounding the bandit from different sides, circling him, just as Hinata worked on her jutsu.

The bandit tried to hit on either Kiba or Akamaru but missed them. The two of them stopped themselves and turned back to normal just as Hinata finished her force field around the bandit.

"Kuso!" the bandit shouted, seeing the barrier he was in. He tried to break the force field, applying strong jutsu against it.

Kiba watched Hinata having a hard time controlling her jutsu and turned to Shino. "Oi!" he called out.

Shino didn't reply but extended his arms out, releasing another army of bugs towards the bandit, and penetrated the invisible barrier easily to surround him.

Under Shino's order, the bugs let out smokes that filled up the trapped area under the force field and around the bandit. They could hear the bandit's scream from the inside as they watched.

"This is not the lethal one right?" Kiba asked. Shino shook his head, "No, it'd just paralyze him,"

"Ah right," Kiba said, nodding his head as he watched the smoke vanished, revealing the man lying on the ground, unmoved.

Hinata released her jutsu and the three of them neared the paralyzed bandit. "Too bad he can't tell us where we could find his boss," Kiba said.

"That would not be necessary," another voice spoke and the three of them looked up to see the blonde jounin with scars on his face standing behind them.

"Raido-san," Hinata said. The said jounin nodded his head and smiled. "We just received orders to catch this crook and his boss," he told them.

"We received the same order too," Shino told him. Raido nodded his head. "Apparently this guy here," he pointed to the paralyzed bandit, "is an A-list, and the boss is S-list, so it falls to us now,"

Raido smiled at them, "But good job anyway on this one," he said. "I'll let Godaime know to reward you for this,"

Hinata looked at the jounin. "So we can go back?"

Raido nodded his head, "Or you can have a little break. This town is going to have it's festival soon. You should enjoy for a while, I heard you guys have been on this mission for more than a month now,"

"Thanks, but we don't think we'll stay here longer," Shino told him.

Hinata nodded, "We're still looking for Tsubasa." Raido nodded his head, "There is still no sign of her yet," he told them.

"I-I'm sure we'll find her," Hinata said, turning her head to Kiba, "right, Kiba-kun?"

Kiba looked at the Hyuuga and nodded his head slowly, only half-heartedly agreeing with her. He had such strong feeling that she was in this town, but a week in it, and there was still no clue.

"I guess—ouch!" he shouted out of the sudden when he felt a hot prickling on his skin.

"D-daijoubu, Kiba-kun?" Hinata asked, surprised. Kiba looked at her and nodded his head. "Yeah," he said as he fished out the source of the pain, "It's the necklace," he told them as he stared at it, eyebrows furrowed. "The pendant suddenly turned hot,"

Hinata and Shino looked at the necklace. Hinata blinked her eyes, "that looks like the necklace Tsubasa-chan has," she stated.

Kiba nodded his head. "This is Tahara's." He said, remembering what Kenji had told him when the latter had lent the necklace to him. "He said it could help locating Tsubasa 'cause it'll turn warm when she—", Kiba paused when the words registered into his brain.

His eyes widened when he finally realized what it meant.

* * *

so, how is it? review please!

and oh, i have just noticed that have registered beta readers. so i was thinking maybe i should get one, because i know my grammar could be an eyesore to another. but i was thinking of taking one from the readers, since the story is already on going, so its better to take one who already knows the story plot so far.

so if there is any registered beta reader who is reading my fic and would like to become my beta reader, then please let me know. i'll be eternally grateful. but even if you're not registered but would like to help, that'd be great too.

thank you!


	21. You're here, I'm here

Hey guys! I'm so sorry it took me like forever to update this. A thousand apologies for keeping all of you waiting. But here it is, the new chapter. Hope you guys will enjoy it and review!

Oh, and a thousand thank you to my new beta-reader; Fanny-kun. Thank you for checking my mistakes and telling me how I should improve. I'm glad you did so and I've learnt a lot. Thank you again.

Here you go, enjoy!

-

-

**Cat and Dog**

-

Chapter 20

-

-

"It's the necklace," Kiba said as he stared at the pendant. "It suddenly turned hot."

_"When we blow into the pendant, we'll tell them of our whereabouts. Similarly, when someone blows into the pendant, we will know of his or her whereabouts." _

_"So you know where she is?" Kiba asked._

_Kenji shook his head. "I would, buy only if she were to blow into her pendant," he said. "But there is another way to know.__When the people who have the same necklaces are in near vicinity, the pendant will feel warm." _

_Kiba__ furrowed his eyebrows, "So it'd turn warm if Tsubasa is nearby?"_

_Kenji nodded his head._

"Kiba-kun? Kiba-kun?" Hinata called him, tapping her hand on his shoulder when she saw he wasn't moving.

The dogmaster stirred from his thought and shook his head. "What's wrong?" Kiba heard the jounin, Raido, say.

"I-uh," Kiba stuttered, still staring at the pendant, which was still warm against his skin. His heartbeat raced.

"What is it?" Shino asked. "You were saying something about Tsubasa," he reminded.

Kiba nodded his head. "Yeah, I-I think I found her,"

Xxx

_"I told you to take the long road, but no, you didn't listen!" Tsubasa shouted to him on their way back._

_"We finished the job already!"_

_"We were attacked! You said, we wouldn't be attacked," Tsubasa said, face red. "But guess what? We were attacked!"_

_"Your point is?" Kiba asked, eyebrows narrowed, irritated._

_"If we had taken the long road, we wouldn't have been attacked!" _

_"Neji decided to use the short road too!" Kiba argued._

_The Hyuuga narrowed his eyes when his name was mentioned and brought into the argument. _

_"That's because he's your friend, of course he'd listen to you!"_

_"Actually, I chose it because—" Neji was about to answer when Kiba cut him off._

_"Why would he want to befriend a stinky cat?" Kiba said; eyes narrowed angrily. Tsubasa narrowed her eyes as well, "Oh yeah, you're nasty too, smelly dog."_

_"At least I can swim," Kiba stated, smirking at her mockingly._

_Tsubasa narrowed her eyes and gritted her teeth. "At least I can climb trees,"_

_"Who'd need tree climbing when you can use your chakra?" Kiba asked her, the atmosphere around them, deadly._

_"I can use chakra over water too, dumbass!" Tsubasa shouted back, irritated._

_"Enough," Neji said, finally deciding to stop their bickering. He stepped in between them and pushed them apart._

_"What?!"__ Kiba started, ignoring Neji. "Cats are lazy! All they do is sleep and eat!" he said and received a growl from Yue, which he ignored._

_"Oh yeah? All dogs do is dig dirt and pee everywhere!" Tsubasa replied. Akamaru growled at her too, but Tsubasa ignored him as well._

_"I said enough!" Neji shouted as he pushed them further apart._

_"And dogs have rabies!" Tsubasa continued, ignoring Neji too._

_"Cats have them too!" Kiba corrected her. _

_Tsubasa__ turned red, and she neared him, eyes gleaming angrily. "Well, it's mostly associated with dogs than cats!"_

_The two of them were staring at each other, ready to choke each other in anger. "Oh yeah?!" Kiba shouted back, "cats make people asthmatic and allergic!"_

_"Dogs have the same effect too, stupid!" Tsubasa screamed. "And you bring in fleas!"_

_Kiba__ gritted his teeth, "Cats have them too idiot!" _

_"Enough!" Neji shouted again, pushing them away with force. That had gotten their attentions and they stared at Neji, eyes narrowed. _

_The two of them paused on their argument and looked at the young jounin. "You stay out of this!!" both of them shouted at the same time. _

Xxx

"I think you should go to her alone, Kiba-kun," Hinata told him.

Kiba stared at her, shocked. "What, why?"

"If she is really here," Shino continued. "Judging from the pendant, and if she does want to go to this town like you said, I am sure she is here."

Hinato nodded, "T-then, it'd be better because you're the only one who'd convince her to come back."

Kiba furrowed his eyebrows. "What? That's nonsense. Besides, don't girls listen to other girls easily?"

"But I think your words would matter most to her," Hinata smiled. "We'll go back and tell everyone not to worry, and to give her time, right, Raido-san?"

Raido blinked his eyes and then looked at Kiba with a sly smile. "Sure. I'll tell the jounins to stop the search too." He said with a grin and a wink to Kiba, to which the latter replied back with a glare.

"Go." Shino told him. "If you don't bring our teammate back, you're dead."

Kiba opened his mouth to correct Shino when the latter continued to speak. "She is still a teammate," he stressed.

Kiba closed his mouth and furrowed his eyebrows, deep in thinking. "Right."

xxx

He ran. He kept running and running. His eyes searched eagerly, looking from each and every face he saw in the town.

He tried to find her scent, Akamaru did too, but neither of them could find her. But the pendant inside his t-shirt was still warm against his skin.

There were many eyes looking back at him too, wondering curiously, what a Leaf ninja and his humongous dog would be doing in their town, running and searching, as if they were looking for something.

Or someone.

Shino, Hinata and Raido had long gone back to Konoha. Kiba made a promise to his teammates to contact them when he either found or did not find Tsubasa.

There was a strong feeling inside him that kept telling him he would find her.

But after two hours, running around the whole town, looked in every corners, every streets, and every public places he saw, he had still yet to find her. Kiba stopped running when he reached the town's park; there was a large fountain pool at its center and Kiba walked towards it and sat on its stone rim.

He closed his eyes. _Where can she be?_ He wondered to himself and pulled out the necklace and placed it in his hand. He looked at it quizzically. The pendant was still warm, which meant that Tsubasa was somewhere in the town. But he didn't see her. He couldn't even sense her.

For once, he was disappointed in his ability that he was proud off.

_"WATCH OUT!!" _

Kiba sighed. He was too distracted about finding Tsubasa that he didn't hear someone shouting to him. He didn't even sense a ball flying fast towards him, until it hit him full speed on the head.

And when he realized it, he was already hit. The impact made him unstable and he fell into the fountain. Kiba gasped and choked when water entered his mouth and throat. His eyes blinked painfully inside the water as he tried to think what had happened.

"I'm so sorry," he heard said above him. He could see blurry images of four people looking at him.

"You drowned him," another voice said.

"I'm really sorry, sir," another voice said and he saw the figure extending a hand towards him.

Kiba grabbed the hand, pushed himself out and coughed out the water from his mouth. He was soaking wet and cold too, from the unnecessary bath. "Thanks," he said to the figure and tried to move aside his wet bangs to see the people in front of him clearly.

"Gomen!" he heard a small boy's voice said to him. "We were playing soccer and I kicked the ball and it—" the boy gasped out of the sudden. "Big doggy!"

Kiba moved his bangs aside and turned to his left and saw three boys surrounding Akamaru. The dog barked at him and told him to look in front. He turned his head around, "Thanks, for pulling me up—" he paused when he saw the person standing in front of him.

The person was a female. And from her height, her frame and her face, he could tell she was around his age. The girl had pale skin; long, silky black hair, and a pair of golden eyes that were staring at him with shock.

His eyes widened. "T-Tsu-Tsubasa," he called out, surprised.

Xxx

Tsubasa didn't expected the man she pulled out of the fountain to be him. Kiba.

She was just playing street soccer with the boys, and when the ball rolled towards the park, and watching it flew towards the unsuspected person, she had readied herself to hear the scolding coming towards them.

But when she ran towards the fountain and pulled up the guy, she received the shock of her life when she heard the familiar voice and saw the familiar face of Inuzuka Kiba in front of her.

She didn't think it could be true. She reassured herself that the guy couldn't be him. But when her eyes caught the huge dog on her far right, she knew she wasn't wrong. Her feet felt wobbly as if they had turned to jelly, the moment she looked at him again.

She wanted to run away, but she felt her body froze, out of shock.

And when her eyes caught his brown ones, Tsubasa felt her body turning cold. And when he saw her, eyes widened and called out her name, Tsubasa felt as if she could faint from shock.

She was not prepared for this.

And she was most definitely not prepared when Kiba hugged her out of the blue.

Xxx

He didn't know what made him do it, he was probably doing it on impulse, or absent mindedly, but there he went, stepping forward and pulling her into his arms.

For the first few seconds, wrapping his hands around Tsubasa made him felt like he had caught her. It made him feel glad, as if a mission had been completed. And it made him feel relieved too, after a long search to find her.

But then, the reality dawned on him and his eyes widened when he had just realized what he had done. _What the hell are you doing hugging her??_ He could hear his inner self shouting in his ears.

Face red, Kiba quickly broke the hug, yet keeping his fingers firmly on her stiff shoulders, as he looked into her golden eyes.

_Keep it together. Act normally._

"O-Oi!" he shouted, shaking Tsubasa. "Where the hell have you been, idiot?!" he said loudly, eyebrows furrowed.

Tsubasa's eyes were staring back at him, still looking shocked and he watched her lips parted to speak, but no sound came out. Her small mouth opened and closed like a fish gaping for air, trying to speak, but to no avail.

Finally, after a few seconds, she had finally found her voice. "W-what are you doing here?" her voice was hoarse, and seem scared.

"What the hell do you mean 'why I'm here'?" he asked back, feeling his face getting warm. "And what the hell is with that stupid look on you?"

"W-why are you here means why _are you_ here," Tsubasa said, emphasizing on the words as she cleared her throat, "I'm asking you why are you here."

Kiba gripped on her shoulders, "What the hell do you mean why am I here?! Don't you know—"

She cut him off, "That's why I'm asking you why are you—"

He cut her back, "I'm here because you're here, idiot!" he shouted. Tsubasa's eyes widened when she heard him and she was silent for a moment.

Then her eyes narrowed irritatingly. "What the hell does that supposed to mean? And who are you calling an idiot, idiot!" she snapped.

"You're the idiot!" Kiba snapped back, eyebrows narrowed too. "Running off from the village and hiding out here and making everyone worry, that's stupid!"

Tsubasa gritted her teeth, "Well I didn't ask you to find me did I?" she said and pushed his hands off her shoulders, "And get your wet paws off of me,"

"And who do you think caused me to be drenched?"

"I didn't." Tsubasa glared. "Haru kicked the ball." She said, pointing to the group of boys who had surrounded Akamaru. They paused on patting the huge dog when they realized the people arguing near them. "And hey! I helped you up, be thankful!"

"I did say thanks!"

"Tsubasa-neechan?" the boy named Haru called out, walking towards them, pushing his brown bangs away from his big blue eyes, looking scared.

"In a minute," Tsubasa waved him off and glared back at Kiba. "Yeah sure, and then you had to make me drenched too," she said, looking at her dampened clothes, caused by Kiba when he hugged her. "Gee, thanks a lot too,"

"H-Hey, hey!" Kiba said, his face red, embarrassed by his sudden action a few minutes ago. "I came here to look for you! Be grateful that they haven't sent the ANBU to hunt you down!"

"Neechan?" Haru called out again, looking really scared watching Tsubasa and the unknown man arguing heatedly.

Tsubasa heard his call but ignored it. She was too furious to let it go. "I wouldn't mind seeing them here rather than seeing you here!" Tsubasa screamed at Kiba.

"Oh yeah?!" Kiba screamed back. "Then I'll call them and have them drag you back home!"

Tsubasa narrowed her eyes. "Bring it on! I'd like to see you do that!" she dared him.

"Tsubasa?"

"WHAT?!" Tsubasa screamed back. What was it with these people calling on her? Can't they see she was in an important argument here?!

She turned her head irritatingly to the person who called her and her eyes widened when she saw an older man standing in front of her, with the boys behind him, frightened. The man was staring at her curiously.

"I-Ishida-san," she called out the older man's name, surprised. Her face turned red from embarrassment.

Ishida, a man in his late twenties, looked back at her and smiled. "I have never seen you this verbal," he chuckled and Tsubasa grew redder.

Kiba narrowed his eyes at the brunette man who had disturbed his argument with Tsubasa. Ishida's blue eyes caught his and looked on quizzically.

"Your friend?" Ishida asked Tsubasa. She frowned and shook her head,

"No, a stranger." She lied.

Ishida smiled, "And you're bickering with a stranger?" he teased. "That's no way to show our town's hospitality." He said and Tsubasa kept quiet, looking at her own shoes.

"And you're drenched wet too," he said, looking at Kiba with a smile. "Let's get you dry up and refresh, okay?"

Kiba looked at the man in front of him curiously. He heard the offer the man said to him, but he felt an aura thickening around the man, making his tone demanding.

Kiba nodded his head slowly. He couldn't sense anything dangerous against the man, but he had to be careful.

"Okay then," Ishida smiled at Kiba and patted Tsubasa's shoulder, "Let's go."

* * *

okay guys, you know the deal. leave me a reply and i'll try my very, very best to update as soon as i can. i promise!

lots of love!


	22. Same Old Brand New You

Hey guys! I am sorry for the late update! But I have something to make it up for! You'll find it after you finish reading this chapter!

And not to forget, a thousand thanks to my beta reader! Love you!

Oh, and disclaimer to the title of the chapter. No, I do not own A1. I just thought the title fit. Hm, I wonder what happen to them now?

Anyway, leaving all these aside, do enjoy the chapter!

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**Cat and Dog**

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Chapter 21

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Tsubasa had never felt this uncomfortable in her life. It was the night when she had met Kiba earlier that day, and the two of them were inside Ishida's house, sitting across each other at the dining table while Ishida, his wife and his son, Haru sat beside them.

"We're the ones taking care of Tsubasa, after well, she ran away," Ishida told Kiba, smiling.

Tsubasa looked down at her fingers while listening to Ishida explaining to Kiba.

"I run a veterinarian clinic two blocks from here, and my wife runs the inn here," Ishida said, looking in the place. Ishida's wife, Yuuko, nodded her head and smiled.

"Tsubasa is helping me out in the clinic and helps out at my cousin's restaurant at night. And she takes care of Haru for us on the weekends," Ishida said, smiling at his son, who was looking bored in return.

"Tsubasa-chan lived here with us, but a week ago, she moved out and lived with her coworkers from the restaurant." Yuuko, the woman who Ishida introduced as his wife, "She's doing quite well in this town even though she's only been here for a month now,"

Tsubasa looked up and looked at Kiba. She was surprised when she saw him staring at her. She blinked her eyes and looked away. It was then that she realized Kiba wasn't staring at her; he was staring past her, deep in his thought.

He looked like he was lost in his thoughts, and Tsubasa furrowed her eyebrows, wondering quizzically. She found herself feeling curious to know what he was thinking about

"We're the only ones in the town who know she came from Konoha," Ishida explained. "And we respect her decision to kept it quiet from the villagers,"

"Inuzuka-kun," Ishida called to him and Kiba stirred from his thought and looked at the older man. "We hope you can understand that she is happy and well accepted here," he said.

Kiba looked at the former but didn't reply in return. He merely nodded his head and turned to face Tsubasa sitting across of him. This time, their eyes met and Tsubasa looked away quickly.

Xxx

After they had finished their dinner, Tsubasa stepped out of the Ishida's house, their inn, for a quick breath. Ishida had invited Kiba to stay for the night at their inn, an invitation that he had accepted.

Kiba followed behind her and stood facing her back when they were outside of the inn.

They stood in silence and Tsubasa couldn't handle the awkwardness and turned around. "Say something," she told him.

Kiba shrugged, "They're apparently excited to see Akamaru," he said, talking about the Ishida family inside the house, playing and admiring Akamaru.

"Aah," Tsubasa nodded her head and crossed her arms.

Kiba looked at her, "It makes me wonder, how ecstatic were they when they saw your talking cat?" he asked her. Kiba was looking straight into her eyes and Tsubasa looked away.

"Where is she, by the way?" he asked her again.

Tsubasa didn't answer, but instead, turned her body around, so he was facing her back again.

"Answer me Tsubasa," Kiba told her. There was no reply.

He neared her, "Oi, Tsubasa!" he pulled her elbow and turned her body around, forcing her to face him. There was fear in her golden eyes and Kiba furrowed his eyebrows, "What's wrong? Cat got your tongue?" he smirked, mocking her.

That had provoked Tsubasa and the fear in her eyes changed into irritation. "What the hell is wrong with you? I can choose myself whether I want to answer your questions or not," she said, looking away again.

"Well, it's just dumb and rude not to answer someone's questions," Kiba told her.

Tsubasa furrowed her eyebrows, "Oh yeah? Well it's rude for someone to poke into other people's lives!"

"No one told you to run away did they?" Kiba added. "You're just causing problems to everyone, it's just troublesome." He frowned at her, "Do you know how worried everyone was?"

Tsubasa kept quiet, not knowing what to answer to his question. Biting her lips, Tsubasa pushed his hand on her elbow, but his grip on her was stronger than she thought. "What the hell Kiba, let go!"

"You might run away again," he smirked.

"I didn't ask to be found! Everyone knows that! You were the one stupid enough to try!"

"No they don't!" Kiba argued again. "Everyone's looking for you, idiot! I was the unfortunate one who actually found you!"

"Then go back! I don't want to see you or any Leaf shinobis here!" she screamed.

"They are everywhere," Kiba smirked. "But then again, even if they were here, I don't think they would find you, since they can't trace your chakra any longer," he said looking straight into her eyes.

Tsubasa's eyes widened a little, "W-What the hell are you talking about?"

"So it's true huh?" Kiba asked. He let go of her elbow and watched her rubbing her reddened elbow, feeling a little guilty inside for causing it on her.

"What's true?" she asked back, continue rubbing her sore elbow and walked further away from him.

"We weren't pulled by that binding jutsu when we argued earlier today and just now." Kiba told her. "And your cat is not here, and I can't find your scent, even though you're right here."

Tsubasa kept quiet. No wonder he was trying to make her argue with him. No wonder he was asking about her cat. And no wonder he was looking so distracted during dinner too.

And the hug, earlier that day.

It was to prove his suspicion.

"You think I didn't notice?" Kiba asked, looking at her seriously. Tsubasa looked down at her feet.

"H-how did you know?" she asked.

Kiba placed his hands in his pockets and looked away. "You said it before." He reminded her. "A long time ago, your clan had to seal off their powers before going into hiding,"

Tsubasa didn't say anything in return. Kiba looked at her and sighed. "You are really being dumb," he said. "Running away and sealing off your powers so you could live in hiding and become a normal person. Do you really feel satisfied with yourself?"

Raising her head, Tsubasa frowned. "What do you know?" she glared at him. "Don't judge me as if you know me inside out, Inuzuka."

"So now it's back to that," Kiba said. "Don't be childish, _Maneki_." He said, looking at her seriously. "Do you think being a normal person without any powers is better than being a ninja?"

"Do you really think it will make you different? Do you really think it will make you normal? Does being normal make you feel much better?" Kiba continued asking her. "Answer me!" he shouted.

Tsubasa bit her lips and shook her head.

"You're being a coward," Kiba told her.

"I'm not a coward!" Tsubasa objected.

"Then tell me why are you afraid to face your own family?! Why are you afraid of facing your own life?!" Kiba asked, his voice, furious. "What the hell are you afraid of?!"

He looked at Tsubasa. She didn't answer him, her body was shaking, and tears welled up in her eyes. Kiba sighed and went on.

"A great man told me that a ninja is someone who stands firm and endures no matter what." He started. "It doesn't matter how strong he was, the most important thing for a ninja is to never give up."

"There are so many people here who would do anything to be a ninja, so they can help other people and feel honored to sacrifice themselves, but you," Kiba paused.

"To think that you would actually give up halfway." He said. "Is this why you wanted to be a vet so much? You can only help animals, but aren't strong enough to help humans?"

"And I came all this way to bring you back, and you're not even worth it to be called a ninja," Kiba said, looking at her, disappointment in his eyes.

Tsubasa looked up and wiped the tears from her eyes. "Then go back!" she cried. "Go back and tell every one there that I am not a ninja anymore! You can call me a coward or anything, just go back!!" she screamed at him before turning around and running away.

Kiba stood there, watching her figure running into the night and he frowned. Did he say too much? But the girl was being idiotic, he couldn't help himself.

"Don't mind her," he heard a voice said. Kiba turned and saw Ishida looking at him. "She has her issues to resolve," he smiled. "And don't worry, she's not running away. This is her place now."

Xxx

Kiba followed Ishida to his clinic the next day. The older man persuaded him to let the former do a check up on Akamaru.

"It will be my first time checking on a nin-dog!" the man told him excitedly and Kiba smiled and agreed.

Besides, he thought watching the vet examine his dog would clear his head. Because of the fight he had with Tsubasa, he couldn't sleep well. It was the first time their argument became so intense.

"Morning," Ishida greeted as they walked into the clinic.

"Morning," a female voice replied and Kiba turned to see Tsubasa greeting them back.

How did he forget that she worked there?

She was smiling when she greeted them, but upon seeing Kiba, she frowned.

Ishida noticed the change and the heavy atmosphere, but pretended like it was nothing. "I'm going to do my first check up on a nin-dog," he told Tsubasa excitedly. "You will assist me right?"

Tsubasa blinked her eyes and looked nervous. "Uh…" she said, thinking of an excuse, but couldn't find one as Ishida pushed her in to one of their rooms. "Come on, Kiba, Akamaru" he called out.

Kiba and Akamaru walked into the room and Kiba told Akamaru to near the vet. The huge dog followed Ishida's order, but the vet could see that it looked a little worried.

"Oh don't worry Akamaru, it won't hurt." Ishida smiled, convincing the dog. "I'm just going to check if you are in good condition, then after that I'll give you a big treat." he said.

Akamaru barked and nodded its head. The dog turned to Kiba and wagged its tail at him, now looking excited about the check up. Kiba smiled. Watching his dog lifted his mood a little.

"Ishida-san, I don't really think it's wise for me to—" Tsubasa was cut off when Ishida waved a hand to her, dismissively.

"Oh don't worry Tsubasa-chan, I was joking." Ishida smiled. "I can do the check up myself."

Tsubasa nodded her head and bowed to the vet before stepping out of the room. She passed by Kiba on her way out and he smirked at her. "A _normal_ person is afraid of a dog?" he asked her.

She glared at him before walking past and heading towards the counter.

Kiba looked away and saw Ishida staring at him. "What?" Kiba asked.

"Go talk to her," he said.

Kiba crossed his arms, "No, I'm gonna watch Akamaru,"

The dog barked in reply and Kiba furrowed his eyebrows. "See?" Ishida laughed, "Even the dog is telling you to go,"

"Fine," Kiba sighed and walked out of the room. He walked towards the counter and saw Tsubasa sitting there, writing something in one of the files there.

"May I help you?" she asked coldly, not looking up.

"We need to talk," he said casually. Tsubasa paused on her work and looked up at him.

"There's nothing to talk about."

"You're being an idiot again," Kiba said.

Tsubasa nodded her head, "Thank you, I accept that as a compliment," she said, standing up, carrying her files and walked past him.

Kiba sighed and ran a hand through his hair, "Tsubasa!" he shouted after her. But she ignored him and continued walking.

"Oi Tsu!" he shouted again, extending his hand and grabbing hold of her arm. She stopped walking and looked at him.

"Let go of me," she said coldly.

"No," he said and sighed. "Look, I'm sorry okay?" he apologized. "I'm sorry for being harsh on you yesterday,"

Tsubasa looked away, "Let go," she said slowly.

"No! I'm not letting you go again!" Kiba told her sternly and his grip on her tightened. "I don't want to lose you again," he said softly.

She kept quiet and didn't reply him. Kiba pulled her towards him. "Let's talk about it," he told her. "Please."

Tsubasa turned her head and looked at him. Her golden eyes met his brown ones and she saw sincerity in them. Tsubasa sighed, "What's there to talk about anymore?"

Kiba thought about it and frowned when he couldn't find anything to answer her. "I don't know. But let's just work this out,"

She turned around, facing him completely. "We're different Kiba," she told him. Suddenly he felt lighter, hearing her calling him by his first name. He knew they were okay now.

Kiba shrugged, "So? We weren't exactly two peas in a pod before," he said smirking.

Tsubasa smiled weakly. "It was different then," she answered and sighed. "It's complicated."

Kiba frowned, "I'll stay a few days, if that'd help,"

She didn't answer him straight forward. Tsubasa stared at the files she was holding and furrowed her eyebrows, deep in thinking. Then, she looked up at him and smiled softly.

"Stay until the festival is over," she told him. "And I'll show you why I like this life,"

Xxx

Kiba picked up the phone and dialed the combination of numbers that he had memorized for years.

"Hello?" a familiar voice picked up the phone. Kiba sighed. He can't believe he's actually calling up Shino.

"Hey," Kiba greeted his teammate. "I found her."

"I know," Shino answered back in his cold voice. "I had one of my bugs to follow you."

Kiba furrowed his eyebrows, "What? You were spying on me?!"

"It was either that, or we were planning of staying there with you," Shino told him. "Good job on fixing the mess you made,"

The dog master frowned. He didn't like it, knowing his life is being watched by his teammate.

"I'm staying here for the week, until the festival is over" Kiba said.

"I know" Shino replied.

Kiba frowned. "Tell everyone not to worry, and tell them not to come here," he said.

"I know." Shino replied.

Kiba narrowed his eyes irritatingly. "Yeah well, tell them I'll convince her to return,"

"I know."

Kiba gritted his teeth, annoyed by his teammate's answers. "Dammit Shino! I'm never calling you again!" he shouted and hung up the phone, ending the call.

* * *

okay, so how was it? Please review!

And here's a present to all of you. Please check out ( http : / / scorpioslayer . deviantart . com / art / Team-Fumie-88942677 ) copy it, and just get rid of the spaces and the (..) . But if that doesnt work for you, you can check the link in my biodata. Anyway, please have a look, and let me know what you think.

A clue of what is it? Well I thought you might want to know how the OCs look like. Hahaha. I gave it away. Please reviews and comments on what you think. I am on semester break, so I will try my best to update as soon as I can.

Love you guys!


	23. The Stranger in My Reflection

Hey guys! Anyway, i don't really have much to say here. So enjoy this chapter!

Oh, and as always, thank you my beloved beta reader! Lots of hugs and kisses!

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**Cat and Dog**

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Chapter 22

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_"Stay until the festival is over," she told him. "And I'll show you why I like this life,"_

Kiba blinked his eyes, "What?"

Tsubasa looked up from her lunch and nodded her head, "Like I said, if it's possible, can you pretend you're not a ninja for a week?"

He raised his eyebrows and crossed his arms, looking at her quizzically. "How is the festival and being a ninja related?"

"Because," Tsubasa said and paused, taking a sip of her drink, "Then they'd be questioning me how I know a shinobi and stuff."

Kiba narrowed his eyes, "What, being a shinobi is embarrassing to you?"

"No, I didn't say that." Tsubasa furrowed her eyebrows, "Don't twist my words and make us fight again."

He smirked, "That's inevitable."

"Yeah well, anyway, can you?"

Sighing, Kiba took off his head gear and placed it on the table. He messed up his hair, his bangs almost covering his eyes. "Happy?"

Tsubasa nodded her head, averting her eyes away from watching him with his hair down. "Thanks."

"Right," Kiba said, looking at his food. "And what am I supposed to do this whole week?"

"The festival starts tomorrow," she informed him. "Ishida-san gave me three days off as reward for delivering the medicine out of town last week, so we can check out the festival," she explained, taking another sip of her drink.

"Huh…" Kiba said, watching her interestedly. "Like a date you mean?" he teased.

Tsubasa choked on her drink and coughed badly. "What?!" she gasped, surprised, her face red.

Kiba smiled, "It was a joke _Maneki_, relax."

"Very funny, _Inuzuka_." She eyed him. He looked back at her, and the two of them continued staring at each other, as if a competition on who stared the longest had started between them.

"Your eyes are red," Tsubasa said, smirking, "Give up."

Kiba laughed, "You look like you're going to cry blood soon,"

After a few seconds, the two of them were still staring at each other. "You got a bug on your head," Tsubasa told him. Kiba ran a hand over his hair, without breaking eye contact and then smirked at her.

"Not working,"

"Che," Tsubasa smirked in return.

Kiba's eyes widened a little, "Someone's standing behind you,"

Laughing, Tsubasa shook her head, "I'm not going to fall for that," she told him.

"Tsubasa-chan?" a voice called up from her behind. Surprised, Tsubasa turned around, thus breaking the eye contest.

"I win," Kiba smirked, sipping on his drink and leaning back against his chair.

Tsubasa ignored him as she stared at the person who called her. "Eri-san," she called out. A woman in her early twenties smiled back, her blue eyes gleaming excitedly.

"Who are you with?" she asked, tucking a strand of blonde hair behind her ears, and looked at Kiba curiously.

"Oh, right of course," Tsubasa nodded her head. "This is Inuzuka Kiba, he's from my hometown," She said, glancing at Kiba as she introduced him. "My co-worker and housemate," she said, to Kiba, pointing to the older woman standing behind them, "Sato Eri-san,"

Eri smiled, "Nice to meet you, Kiba-kun." Kiba nodded his head as he extended his hand and shook the woman's hand, "Same here."

"Wait a minute," Eri suddenly said, looking at Kiba, eyes widened. She pointed her fingers at him, "He's the one you called 'bloody idiotic jerk who always think he's right and why can't he just stuff a stick in his mouth and wag his tail back home!' yesterday night, right?"

Kiba raised his eyebrows, and Tsubasa turned red and covered her face embarrassingly. "So…" Kiba started and Tsubasa turned her head to look at him.

She raised a finger, "Don't you dare, twist my words again!"

"I don't need to, when it's all clear," he said coldly.

Tsubasa frowned, "That was yesterday! I didn't know we were going to make up this fast!"

"Oh, so it's fine for you to insult me?" he asked. "That's why you want me to stay? So you can shout to people so they'll have bad impressions on me?!" he asked, narrowing his eyes.

Tsubasa narrowed her eyes as well. "There you go, twisting my words again!" she said, irritated. "And you're already making a bad impression to Eri-san!" she said, pointing to Eri who was watching them argue, dumbfounded.

"Well, who's fault do you think this is?!" Kiba shouted back to her. Tsubasa frowned and bit her lips when she couldn't come up with anything to argue back. In then end, she raised up her hands frustratingly,

"You're just impossible!"

Xxx

"But I have to admit, he's quite cute," Eri told Tsubasa that night when they were working at the restaurant. The older woman tied her white pocket waist apron around her and smoothen it out. She turned to face Tsubasa, "Are you close with him?"

"No," Tsubasa frowned, as she placed her notebook and pen inside her the pocket of her red apron. "We argue a lot." She said, taking out a hair chopstick and twist her long hair into a bun, securing it with the chopstick. "And he's not cute," she added.

Eri looked at her and smiled, "You guys are funny when you argue," she laughed, remembering the event earlier that day. "And he is cute."

"Who's cute?" another voice asked and both of them turned to see the owner of the restaurant looking at them curiously. Mizuki Yuri, a woman in her forties with short brown hair and blue eyes turned to face Tsubasa and smiled, "Your boyfriend?" she asked.

Tsubasa sighed, "No," she said. She walked to the mirror inside the changing room and straightened her uniform. Ignoring Eri who was explaining to Yuri about her encounter with Kiba, Tsubasa looked at her own reflection, watching herself in the black polo tee, jeans and canvas shoes, she frowned. No matter how long she stared at the reflection, she can only see a girl in her black ninja outfit, with the Konoha's headgear tied on her waist, and a grey cat standing beside her, looking back at her.

"Tsubasa did you hear?" Yuri asked her, stirring her from her thoughts. "I told you to be prepared for tonight's customers, since the festival starts tomorrow, there'll be more people coming from all over the country."

"Right." Tsubasa nodded her head. "Sorry."

Eri laughed, "See I told you, she's love sick thinking of her Kiba."

"Who are you talking about?" another voice asked and Tsubasa turned her head to see many of the waitresses entering the changing room, and all of them were looking at Eri, interested with her story.

"Tell us!" one of them said, excited.

Tsubasa sighed as she tried to walk out of the room, ignoring the story Eri was repeating to the others of her meet with Tsubasa's 'lover'. She could hear the waitresses making noises and teasing her about it and she grew red. "He's not my boyfriend!" Tsubasa objected.

Xxx

Kiba looked at the family in front of him curiously. They were walking into a busy restaurant that night, Kiba frowning when he saw the restaurant was crowded with people. "Are you sure this is okay?" he asked Ishida who was about to enter the restaurant.

Ishida turned around and smiled, "Sure it is. They have the best steaks in the country," he said proudly.

"But there's a lot of people," Kiba pointed out, looking through the window again. "And there's a lot of people at the inn too," he said, looking at Ishida's wife.

"That's why I have workers," she told him smiling.

Ishida nodded his head, "It's fine. On the eve of the festival, the restaurants around will give out discounts to their customers, including this one," he said, pointing to the restaurant behind him. "And it's the only time when pets can enter too," he said, looking at Akamaru, who had transformed into a normal size dog, standing in between Kiba and Haru.

"C'mon Niisan!" Haru grinned excitedly. "Tsubasa-neechan is working here! I want her to serve us!"

Kiba raised an eyebrow and looked back at the restaurant. Curiously, he stepped forward and pulled open the wooden door of the restaurant first. The place was noisy when he entered and crowded too with people. A waitress walked forward to where he and the Ishida's family were standing and greeted them.

"Neechan!" Haru said excitedly and Kiba turned to look at the waitress. A grin formed automatically on his face when he saw Tsubasa standing in front of them, in her uniform and apron, face red and hair messy from the busy work. Her eyes widened when she saw him and she frowned.

"What the heck you're grinning like an idiot for?" she asked him, annoyed at his reaction seeing her working at the restaurant. Kiba shook his head, trying to suppress his laughter.

"Nothing." He said, still grinning, "Is that a way to treat your customers?" he teased her, watching her frown, and eyeing him as she ushered them to an empty table.

_This is going to be one long night,_ she thought to herself. She passed the menus to the Ishida family, smiling pleasantly at them and glared when she passed the menu to Kiba, who in return, ignored her.

Xxx

Tsubasa walked into the dressing room, late at the night, when the restaurant had finally closed.

She pulled her apron off her waist and undid the bun in her hair. Sounds of footsteps were heard behind her and she turned to see some of her coworkers walking in, to change too.

Eri stood beside her, a grin on her face. "What?" Tsubasa asked, sighing from the lethargic.

"Oh my god, Tsubasa-chan, he is cute," Mariko, another co-worker said excitedly. Tsubasa turned and her eyes widened when other coworkers told her their opinions of her 'so-called-boyfriend'.

Tsubasa turned and glared at Eri, "You told them," she said and Eri shrugged, grinning in return. She turned to face her coworkers and shook her head. "He's not," Tsubasa corrected again and again, but grew tired when they didn't believe her.

"Are you guys going to the festival together?" Mariko asked again, "Is that why he's here?"

Tsubasa sighed, too tired to tell them the truth. "It's a long story," she told them in return. _He's here because he's trying to convince me to go back to Konoha, where, yes, I was a ninja, but I'm trying to convince him that I like this life better, oh, why I'm not a ninja? That's a rather long story too._

"Tsubasa-chan, here," Eri called her. Tsubasa turned to face the former, when she saw Eri holding up a small booklet.

She took it in her hand, looking at it curiously. "What's this?"

"It's the festival programs and the map of the booths too, it was just printed out a few hours ago," Eri explained.

"And?" Tsubasa asked, although she had a slight idea what it was for.

Eri shrugged, "I don't know, hm, maybe you'd find it handy when you want to walk around the festival together with him," she grinned.

Tsubasa opened her mouth to say something back in return, but closed it again when she couldn't decide what to say. She looked thin booklet and placed it in her sling bag. She walked out of the restaurant a few minutes later, with her coworkers, and looked at her wristwatch. It was nearing 1 a.m. and she wondered quietly about Kiba.

She remembered a few hours ago, how distracted she felt serving up the customers when he was in the restaurant. It felt even more difficult to serve him and she tried her best to do her job. But with him around, she felt like she was being watched by him, whether she was serving him or not, and it felt awkward to her, but at the same time, pleasant.

"Hey, Tsubasa-chan, look," Eri called her and nudged her on the elbow. Tsubasa stirred from her thought and looked at where Eri had pointed her. She saw a figure jogging towards her and she looked at the figure, surprised.

"Kiba," she called out, surprised to see him that late in the night. Kiba slowed down and stopped in front of her, looking a little surprised too, to see her. "Did you just finish work?" he asked. She nodded her head and his eyes widened. "It's late already."

"A lot of customers," she explained. "What are you doing?" she asked him back.

"Jogging," he answered simply, and Tsubasa could see it from the sleeveless tshirt and shorts he was wearing that were soaked with sweat, along with his red face and skin.

"This late?" Eri asked from behind and Kiba looked to see many of Tsubasa's coworkers looking at him. He nodded his head, "Yeah. Have to use up the energy from dinner," he smiled.

"You're so young and healthy," Mariko commented. "You remind me of the Konoha ninjas I've seen around the town before,"

Kiba smiled awkwardly. "Er, thanks?"

"Tsubasa-chan, we'll go first," Eri said, winking to her and the other coworkers. The others nodded their heads too, and before Tsubasa could argue, all of them had already left. "Walk her back, Kiba-kun!" Eri shouted to the two of them.

"What's that about?" Kiba asked, looking at her.

Tsubasa sighed, "Ignore them, they're just tired." She said as she started walking. "All of them think you're cute, and I think the lethargic is making them mad."

Kiba looked at her and followed her. "You're making that up. Everyone would fall for _the _Kiba, naturally." he smirked.

Tsubasa snorted and paused walking when she noticed he was following her. She turned to face him, "What?"

"What?" Kiba asked back. "I'm sending you back, duh."

"I know my way around," Tsubasa told him. Kiba nodded, "I do still need to jog," he smirked.

Tsubasa frowned, knowing she had lost. "Where's Clifford?" she asked him, looking around.

"Who?" Kiba asked.

"You know, Clifford, the big red dog," Tsubasa told him and Kiba knew she was referring to Akamaru.

"He has a name you know, Akamaru," he told her. "He's back at the inn, sleeping. I just wanted some time alone." Tsubasa nodded and shrugged. Both of them continued to walk in silence. It didn't feel awkward to them at all.

"I talked to Shino," Kiba said, breaking the silence. Tsubasa nodded her head. She knew he would bring up Konoha matters any minute, and she was prepared for it.

"Oh, how is he?" she asked, casually. "He's watching us, isn't he?"

Kiba laughed, "How did you know?"

"I told you I saw a bug on your head earlier today," Tsubasa said and paused, "Or was it yesterday, now that it's 1 in the morning?" she wondered out loud.

"I should have known," Kiba nodded. "He's annoying."

"He's your teammate, he cares," Tsubasa said, looking up at the starry sky.

"Your teammate too," Kiba said absent mindedly as he remembered Shino telling him she was their teammate too not long ago.

"What?"

He looked at her, surprised by what he had said himself. "Your teammates," he started, "They care for you too, you know," he told her.

"Sho and Kenji?" Tsubasa asked, her eyes saddened and Kiba saw her fingers vaguely touched the pendant of her necklace. "I miss them," she said softly.

"Shino probably told them and your family where you are by now," Kiba told her and Tsubasa nodded, fully aware of that. "But I think they respect your decision to be left alone."

"That's good," She smiled and looked at Kiba, "Too bad, one guy didn't." she teased.

Kiba narrowed his eyes, "Oi," he said, turning his head to face her, ready to scold her on how ungrateful she was that he hasn't drag her back to Konoha, but is trying to understand her decision instead, when he saw a booklet shoved to his face.

"What the heck?" Kiba asked, surprised, and took the book from her. He frowned as he flipped it open and looked through the map, confusedly.

"It's the map of the booths opened for the festival, and there's festival programs too." Tsubasa explained to him. "I thought we could use it when we go check it out tomorrow," she said and Kiba looked at her strangely. "What?" she asked.

"Nothing," Kiba said, closing the book and passing it back to her. "It's for a whole week, right?"

Tsubasa nodded, "There'll be a lot of stalls, and activities, it should be fun," she said, and stopped walking. She pointed to the tall building beside her and smiled, "I stay here."

Kiba looked at the apartment building and nodded his head. "What time to meet?"

"Um, 10? At the park?" she tried.

He nodded his head. "Cool," he said and smirked. "It's a date, then"

Tsubasa grew red and opened her mouth to object when Kiba stopped her, "It's a joke," he told her, shaking his head as he turned around and continued walking towards the inn where he stayed.

"I-I knew that," she shouted at his retreating figure. She watched him raise his hand and waving it at her, bidding 'goodnight' without turning his body around to face her.

Tsubasa watched until he had disappeared from her view and looked at the booklet in her hand. She studied it carefully. In her head, she wondered how their day would go tomorrow. Would they be okay or would they argue to the point of choking each other's throats like before?

Somewhere inside of her, she hoped she'd have a great time, with him. And somehow, strangely, she couldn't shake the feeling inside her that told her something good was going to happen soon.

* * *

review please! thank you!

by the way, i've posted a one-shot shikaino called '27 years'. Do check it out sometimes k? love you guys! Have a nice weekend!


	24. More than One Beat

Hi guys! Yes, I know it has been a long, long, loooooooong time since i last update. i would tell you why, but i've been using the same excuse since a few chapters back. i am really really sorry for this delay. (bows)

anyway, hope you will enjoy this one!

And as always, a thousand thanks to my great beta-reader!

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**Cat and Dog**

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Chapter 23

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Kiba had always thought when he found the right girl he wants to date, he would know it straight away. That usually happened to a lot of people, right? He thought his body would give him a clue to let him know. But before he met Tsubasa, he had never felt anything strange when he faced a female.

…

Okay, that was a lie.

He had felt something, like his heart skipped a beat when he first met Hinata. He had never seen a girl so pale, so shy and with amazing pupils-less eyes like her. But that only happened once. He was probably too young back then to think of what the feeling meant, and ever since then, he had treated Hinata like a younger sister he never had.

And then there was a time when he first talked to Ino, but it happened only once too. He thought it was probably the long, golden tresses and the interesting fact that she wrapped most of her body with bandages. He understood what it meant when his heart skipped a beat by then, but seeing Shikamaru giving him a lazy, yet meaningful glare, kept Kiba off the blonde girl.

There were also some times when his heart skipped a beat when he saw older women, like Kurenai, Anko and Shizune, even the ramen shop girl. But it had always been only once, to each woman. And the feeling didn't last long too. Kiba thought it was probably their maturity that had him interested.

But then, when he first met Tsubasa, minus the time when they first argued back when they were five and six years old, he thought he felt his heart skipped _two_ beats. He was well aware of it, but denied it. Back then, he thought, it was probably the hatred that triggered it, and not anything else.

And the surprising thing was that, unlike any other females, which his heart only skipped once to each person, it happened again with Tsubasa. That time, he remembered it was when she called him by his first name for the first time. It made him confused that it was happening again, to the same person, the person he was supposed to hate. But it didn't stop there either; he felt his heart skip a beat a few times when he was with her. He remembered once it happened when he watched her sleep on his bed, when she was high with fever. He remembered once, when she was crying to him, upset that she couldn't see her brother, and then, when she looked at him in the eyes before he kissed her.

He still remembered that night when he kissed her for the first time. It was his first time too, and he had to admit embarrassingly, he wasn't sure how to do it properly, his head was still in shock on the fact that their lips touched. It was Tsubasa that took over, leading him. Kiba wasn't sure if it was the alcohol inside her that made her seem natural doing it, or maybe she had a few experiences kissing before, but Kiba didn't dare to ask. Knowing she'd probably forget about the kiss the next morning, Kiba promised himself to not tell her about it. He was already ashamed that he took a chance on her, on Maneki Tsubasa, the girl he was supposed to hate by nature.

Thinking about the kiss made his blood rush, but he didn't regret that it had happened.

After that incident, after learning she was missing, and after finding her, he was still surprised that his heart was still skipping crazily like when he saw her for the first time, when he saw her at the vet clinic, and when he saw her at the restaurant.

And now, he was standing in front of the fountain at the park, staring at his reflection in the water, wearing a pair of jeans and plain t-shirt, waiting for Tsubasa that morning, at the promised place and time where they'd go to the festival together.

Kiba sighed to himself when he began to think about Tsubasa. He knows his body is acting weird when Tsubasa is around, and he is well aware why it was happening.

He just…couldn't accept it.

"Hey!" he heard a voice shouted behind him and Kiba turned his head and saw Tsubasa walking towards him, dressed in a sleeveless top and short skirt, her long black hair falling down her back, and she smiled at him as she neared him.

Kiba looked at her and felt the familiar bolt inside of him. _Shit_, he thought as he felt his heart skipping a beat again, _if this keeps happening, I'm going to have a heart attack soon._

"Hey," he greeted her, acting as normally as he could. He tried his best to avert his eyes from staring at her long, smooth, pale legs, and focused on the small festival's booklet.

"Where do you want to go?" he asked her. Tsubasa tilted her head and leaned closer to him, to take a look at the map inside the booklet he was looking at.

Kiba gulped at their closeness and took in her vanilla scent. He usually hated anything vanilla, but he thought the scent fitted her.

"Hm, have you had your breakfast?" she asked him and pointed to one booth in the map. "We could go to this tea shop, if you want."

"Sure," he answered back, trying to look as casual and as normal to her as possible.

Xxx

Tsubasa on the other hand, didn't find Kiba strange at all. She was actually excited about the festival, and it showed on her face as she looked around the busy street filled with booths.

"You look excited," Kiba told her when they were seated down in the teashop, waiting for their oolong tea to cool.

"I'm not," Tsubasa tried to deny it. How was it possible, she thought, that this guy could see her excitement?

"It's written all over your face," he answered her unasked question. "You've never been to any festivals before?"

Tsubasa frowned. "I have. This is my second time." She said, smiling to herself. "The first time was here too, with Sho and Kenji. We had a mission somewhere nearby, and we came here," Tsubasa paused, thinking back of the time she was with her teammates and then looked at Kiba, "That was really fun. How many festivals have you been to with your teammates?"

Kiba looked up and thought about it, "Hm..too many..." He told her, taking a sip of his tea. He placed the china cup back down and looked at her, "Why do find this special anyway?"

Tsubasa knew he wasn't asking her specifically about the festival, she knew he was asking rather generally, on why she liked to be a normal person in this town, rather than being a kunoichi back at the village.

"It's nice isn't it, this town," she told him, stirring her tea.

She didn't look at him, but she knew he was frowning. Then she heard a soft sigh, "Yeah it's nice." she heard Kiba said. "All towns are nice, including Konoha,"

Tsubasa closed her eyes. She knew that was coming. "This is different than Konoha." She told him and reopened her eyes, only to find his brown eyes staring straight at her.

"What's so different?"

Tsubasa continued stirring her tea, "Well for starters, there's no one jumping from roof to roof just to avoid walking, no troublemaker trying to paint the statues, no masked assassins, and definitely no ninjas."

"That sounds boring," Kiba said, matter-of-factly.

"It sounds normal." Tsubasa interjected.

Kiba furrowed his eyebrows. "What's so normal about this town? Everyone doing the same routine, the same task everyday." he asked her. "These people are living in the dark, they don't know the dangers facing them, facing the whole country, and they're powerless. That's why they need people like _us_."

He frowned and took a glance outside of the teashop, where he could see many people surveying at the booths outside the café. "I can tell you these people here are dying to get out of their usual lives, become different, having powers, just like us." He told her and glanced back at her. "And you know I'm right."

Tsubasa bit her lower lip, not knowing what to reply to his statement. She sat still, looking at her cooled tea and the plate of pastries on the table, not wanting to look at him.

The two of them ate and drank in silence, not wanting to say anything to the other, knowing very well how dense the atmosphere between them are. It was later when Kiba finished his tea, he spoke again.

"I forgot to give you a message from Arai-san," he told her and watched her body froze and her eyes widened. He continued. "He told me that he knew you were going to run away, but he didn't think you'd run this soon."

Tsubasa didn't say anything, so Kiba went on. "Your family didn't go searching for you because your advisor, Ueno, told them not to. Your brother gave out a similar order too, and that's why neither he nor Arai-san has come looking for you."

Kiba wasn't sure if Tsubasa was smiling or frowning. There was a look on her face that he couldn't describe, somewhere between relief and disappointment.

"That's good to know," Tsubasa told him after a few moments, nodding to herself, head down.

"I'm not finished," Kiba continued. "Arai-san told me to tell you that the reason your brother ordered for you not to be found was because your brother thought it'd be better for you to leave."

"He's right," Tsubasa said quietly to herself.

Kiba ignored her and continued, "At least," he said. "Until he fixes all the problems with the clan and changes it for the better so you'll have no more excuses to run away." He ended his sentence and looked at her. Tsubasa looked a little surprised by what he had said and was at loss for words. Kiba smirked, "You know, if it's just a problem, you could always talk to them and work things out."

She eyed him as if he had mocked her. "Easier said than done." She told him. "I have no problem with the clan."

Kiba nodded his head, "Sure you do. You hate that Ueno woman; hate the spy work you'd have to do in the future. That's why you left, isn't it?"

"No," she answered and huffed. "Trying to change the clan," she smirked mockingly, "As if that can be done."

"You don't even believe in your own family," Kiba pointed out. "What are you so afraid of?"

"I'm not afraid of anything," Tsubasa told him. "I'm not afraid of my family and no, that's not why I left."

"Then?" Kiba asked her. "Why did you really leave? Because you grew bored being a kunoichi?" he smirked, "You're still a chuunin and you're already bored? Or are you afraid because the missions will be tougher?"

"No." Tsubasa frowned. "I told you I left because I prefer this life better."

"And why the hell this life is better?"

"Why?" Tsubasa asked back and her eyes moved rapidly. "B-Because it's calm! Peaceful! You don't have to stand on your toes every night and have enemies ambush you with their giant snakes and crazy ninjas."

She continued. "You don't have to worry when your loved ones go out of town for work, have nightmares about them being sent back home as corpses, and seeing it actually happen."

"Deaths happen everywhere, you said that before," Kiba reminded her.

Tsubasa nodded, "When you're in Konoha. Going out of the gate is like welcoming your doom. You faced it yourself, when you went after that crazy Sasuke. Some of you might have ended up dead if no help went after you. And all of you were young, and could have done great things in life if you didn't die with holes in your body."

"That was Neji." Kiba corrected.

Tsubasa stared at him, "Oh right, you were the one stabbing yourself crazily to death," she pointed out, feeling annoyed with him.

Kiba kept quiet and remained calm. He pushed the memory of the battle he had to endure three years ago. "And death is inevitable, even if you're young or old." He stayed on the subject.

"It could have been avoided," Tsubasa argued back. "Like back during the Kyuubi attack, if my father didn't go—"

"Your father was protecting the village," Kiba cut her off, feeling a little irritated when she brought up the topic. It reminded him of his own father and how a small part inside his heart is still empty and ached from the loss of a father that he didn't even know.

"Your father," he continued, "My father, the Yondaime and all other ninjas back then sacrificed their lives to save others. That's noble." He scolded her. "Iruka-sensei's parents died, Naruto's too, and a lot of people lost their family members, and instead of feeling proud of what they had done, you're complaining about it."

Tsubasa gritted her teeth, "If my father didn't go, my mother wouldn't have gone insane and left us." She said angrily. "And as much as I hate her for leaving, I understood her."

Her face was red and Kiba could see her eyes were watery, but she was holding the tears back. "If I was her, I would have gone insane too, to know my husband had passed away without even knowing I was carrying his child!" she said, her voice harsh. "From that I would hav—"

Kiba suddenly looked at her, raising his palm to stop her from talking. He looked shocked as he spoke, "Wait a minute." He told her. "That's it." He nodded, and leaned closer towards Tsubasa.

"You're afraid you'd become like your mother," Kiba concluded. "That's why you left."

Tsubasa looked at him, in shock too. Then she narrowed her eyes, gritted her teeth and stood up. "We're done here," she said coldly to him before leaving the café.

Kiba's eyes widened and he stood up quickly to stop her, but she had already left. Feeling like the other customers inside the café were watching him, Kiba frowned, messed up his hair frustratingly and paid for their food and drinks before going after her.

He saw her back, walking as fast as she could, around 10 feet ahead of him. Seeing her leave made him feel irked. And using a small amount of his chakra, he sped up, carefully avoiding the people in the crowded area, reached up to her, and pulled her hand, to stop her from walking away.

Tsubasa turned when she felt her hand being tugged and her eyes narrowed when she saw it was Kiba.

"This is getting annoying," Kiba started, holding tight to her hand so she couldn't escape. "I'm getting tired of this, fighting, making up, and fighting again." He said, looking serious.

Tsubasa frowned. "It's nature, not like we could help it," she said, annoyed as she tried to pry her hand from his grip.

"But you're not a cat anymore!" Kiba shouted angrily, his eyebrows furrowed, eyes narrowed and teeth gritted furiously. Tsubasa looked taken aback to see him that way, he looked really angry to her. It had been a long time since she had seen him really angry.

"You're a normal person right?!" he shouted, pulling her. Tsubasa nodded weakly, still trying to pull herself from him, without prevail.

"Then why the hell are we still fighting?!" he asked her, gripping her hand as tight as he could. He looked at Tsubasa, waiting for her reply, but she was staring at her feet, not wanting to look at him in the eye.

"Answer me!" Kiba said, pulling her closer and making her head turned to face him. Tsubasa looked at him, a little bewildered and scared.

She stuttered and glanced down at her hand, "I-it h-hurts," she winced.

Kiba understood what she was saying and quickly released her. Tsubasa's hand was red and he felt a pang of guilt inside him when he saw her taking a few steps backwards, still looking afraid of him.

He took a few steps away from her too, ashamed of himself for inflicting pain on a girl like her. She was a normal person now, he knew. Her body was weaker than when she was a ninja.

They stood across from each other, far from the rest of the town, in silence. Kiba watched her, couldn't think of what he wanted to say to her, and watched her looking awkward in silence. He saw her eyes moving around, to look at her surroundings and avoiding his eyes.

Suddenly they heard a bark and he watched her looking startled. Kiba looked at the owner of the sound and saw a small black pup standing a foot away from Tsubasa.

The pup barked again and Kiba furrowed his eyebrows when he understood what it said. _I'm hungry._

Tsubasa frowned and looked at the pup, still startled by its appearance. "I-I don't have any food." She told the pup and Kiba was surprised to see that she understood the pup. "Go to the clinic," she instructed the pup with a weak smile.

Kiba watched her and the pup, the pup wagging its tail excitedly to her, telling her to come with him and to feed him. Tsubasa on the other hand, looked surprised, awkward and somehow, as she kept glancing between the pup and Kiba, looked a little embarrassed.

Finding his mood lightened and amused with the situation, Kiba stood up and walked towards Tsubasa and the pup. She saw him coming as she glanced his way and tried her best to ignore him and tell the pup again to go over the clinic.

Kiba reached them and stood in front of her and the pup. He fished out a small packet from his pocket, dog treat he kept for Akamaru, and tore open the packet.

Tsubasa looked at Kiba and watched him squatting down in front of the pup and poured the food from the packet for the small dog. The black pup wagged its tail at him and barked to thank him before munching down the food.

He patted the pup and Tsubasa saw a small smile crept on his face as he watched the dog eat. His face looked calm comparing to how he was a few minutes ago and she felt relieved.

"Hey," she called his name. Kiba turned his head and looked up at her standing body. Tsubasa glanced down at him for a moment before turning her head away, her face red.

"I'lltrynottopickafightwithyouandnottogetpissedoffeasily," she told him, speaking as fast as she could. The words became mumbled up, because she felt embarrassed. She couldn't believe she was giving in.

Kiba blinked his eyes when he couldn't understand what she had said. "Huh?"

Tsubasa frowned, face still red. She cleared her throat, "I mean, I'm sorry," she said, this time slowly but firm.

Kiba raised an eyebrow at her, before standing up, crumpling the empty packet into a balled plastic and tossing it away. He turned his head to face her and gave her his usual smirk.

"Me too."

* * *

so what do you think?

Do comments. I love comments. They're the things I look forward to when I open my inbox the first couple of days after I updated a chapter. Haha...

And I promised, I will try very very hard to continue ASAP. The story should reach its ending like in (beepp!!) chapters , and I would love to complete this story as soon as I can. (Which is doubtful with my schedule, but for you guys i will GIVE MY BEST!!)

anyway, have a nice weekend everyone! love you guys lots!


	25. Two dogs, You and Me

Hey guys!! How are you? It's been long, I know. And I'm sorry.

Anyway, I won't keep you long. As always, millions thanks to my beta-reader, Fanny-kun. Couldn't have done this better without you!

Enjoy reading!!

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**Cat and Dog**

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Chapter 24

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Tsubasa checked her reflection in the mirror and smiled to herself as she tucked a strand of loose hair in behind her ear. She smoothened out her red tank top and her dark jeans and headed for the door.

She passed by her roommates on her way out and smiled to them. "I'll see you at the restaurant later today," she told them and bid them goodbye.

"Wait," Eri called her and Tsubasa stopped. "Are you going out to see Kiba-kun?"

Tsubasa nodded her head. "Yeah, why?"

Eri and their other roommates, who were co-workers at the restaurant, smiled at each other. "Nothing." She said. "Tomorrow night's the fireworks festival, why don't you ask him to go with you?"

Tsubasa blinked her eyes. "Aren't we working tomorrow night's?"

"No, silly," Seiko, one of her roommates laughed, "Tomorrow's all the shops are going to be closed. Everyone's going to the fireworks festival."

"Oh," Tsubasa said. "I'll ask him if he's interested,"

Xxx

For the past few days, she and Kiba had been spending much of their time together. They went to the beach together with Haru and his friends; she remembered how hot her face felt when she saw him only in a pair of blue shorts coming out from the sea with his wet bangs stuck to his forehead. Tsubasa never thought she'd ever be able to get a nosebleed by watching a person, but it would have happened if she didn't quickly pressed two cold cans against her cheeks to cool herself.

Even when she had started working again at the clinic, he'd come and help out with the animals. It didn't surprise her that Kiba loved animals just as much as she did, and he looked comfortable holding fragile animals and treating them. He had grinned at her while he was feeding a bird through a straw saying he'd become a better vet than her, and Tsubasa's heart beat so fast by watching him, she was almost sure he could hear it.

True to her words, Tsubasa had showed Kiba the things about the town that had made her abandon being a ninja. She showed him the friendly town people, the peaceful ocean sceneries and the love she felt by being with animals without worrying about leaving them for missions.

Kiba was kind enough to keep his thoughts to himself and did not judge her. He didn't say anything when Tsubasa mentioned the advantages of being a normal person and he didn't try to argue with her. Kiba nodded at whatever she said and had tried to understand her view..

A huge soft spot for him formed inside of Tsubasa from watching how supportive he was.

Xxx

That day, the two of them decided to visit the town's festival booths with Haru and Akamaru. They invaded all the food and games stalls to have fun.

Tsubasa and Kiba were squatting in front of a huge aquarium full of goldfish with paper scoops twirling in one hand, and bowls in the other. Haru had gone off along with Akamaru, to show off the huge dog to his friends.

Tsubasa looked at the school of goldfish swimming inside the tank in front of her and her golden eyes narrowed as she aimed one of them.

Kiba frowned, concentrating as he aimed for a goldfish as well. The two of them didn't talk to each other, reminding themselves of the challenge they had both agreed to take.

Kiba moved first, driving the paper scoop quickly inside the water, under one of the goldfishes and scooped it up hurriedly into his bowl without getting the paper scoop torn.

He smirked triumphantly at her, and she was quickly reminded of the look he had on his face whenever he played videogames with Haru.

Tsubasa tried to ignore him and dove her own paper scoop into the tank just like he did. She moved as quickly as she could and when she was finished, she still managed to save her paper scoop and had two goldfish inside the bowl, one more than Kiba had managed.

"I win," she said smugly and passed her bowl of pair of goldfish to the owner of the stall. She looked at Kiba who frowned at his sudden defeat. "You owe me lunch," she laughed at him.

Kiba stood up and smirked as he watched Tsubasa holding a clear plastic of water and three goldfishes they had caught. "I keep forgetting that your interest in fish is from your nature." He joked with her and Tsubasa smiled.

"Fish taste good," she told him with a sly grin, "especially raw ones," she raised the plastic of goldfishes and licked her lips playfully. When Tsubasa saw the look of disgust on Kiba's face, she laughed.

"Go on then, buy the lunches," Tsubasa said, giving him a slight push. "I want fish burgers, with extra fish," she grinned and Kiba turned to her.

"I'll get you roasted rat instead," he said and she laughed.

"That's even better."

Xxx

Kiba felt like someone had poured a cup of warm cocoa all over him. Hearing Tsubasa laugh felt so utterly weird and pleasant, he had an urge to record it.

It was hard, he thought, to hear her laugh. She had rarely laughed back in Konoha, always being so serious and strict. He had seen her friendly side with the others except him, but seeing her friendly with him now, and laughing too, here in this stranger's town, made him feel awkward.

Kiba watched the stalls around him, there were so many people visiting all the stalls and he wondered quietly what Tsubasa would like to eat. Of course she had jokingly told him about the fish burger, but he thought he wanted to get something else.

Then his eyes fell on a stall that was selling dumplings and he was brought back to memory lane.

_"Of course dumpling is better," Tsubasa said as she blew on her hot ramen._

Kiba eyed her, "No, spring roll is,"

_Tsubasa narrowed her eyes at him and the other chuunins who were there, having lunch_,_ kept quiet. Naruto watched the two of them intently, Neji and Shikamaru sighed while Sho, Kenji, Hinata and Shino gulped._

_Here we go, they all thought as Kiba and Tsubasa started on their usual argument._

Kiba smiled to himself, and he neared the stall. The owner smiled at him as he made an order. While waiting for the food to be ready, Kiba noticed the stall beside him.

There was a young girl attending the stall by herself. A few older girls had just walked away after making purchase with her and the young girl bowed her head to thank them. Kiba's eyebrows furrowed when he saw the colorful and various hair ornaments that were on display at the young girl's stall.

One of the hair ornaments caught his attention and he stared at it, deep in thinking.

Xxx

Tsubasa sat in one of the benches at the park and she raised the plastic with the three goldfish and watched them. From the clear water, she could see the view of the fountain in the park across from her bench and Tsubasa tilted her head to have a better view of the fountain.

She found herself smiling when she remembered the first time she met Kiba after she had run away and the moment when he had hugged her tight in his arms. The thought made her face red and her heart skipped a beat. Remembering the event back then, if she wasn't too shocked to have seen him, she might have enjoyed the hug.

Standing up, Tsubasa walked towards the fountain and squatted in front of its manmade pool. She untied the plastic of her gold fishes, tilted it and watched the water, and the three goldfish falling out from the plastic and into the pool.

Tsubasa stood up and smiled pleasantly to herself as she watched the goldfish swim. Then her eyes caught the vision of four little boys and a huge dog and she turned her head.

"Haru-kun?" she called out when she saw Haru and his three other friends, all of them riding on Akamaru, who didn't look upset with it, walking out of the festival place. Akamaru came to a halt and Haru turned to face her.

"Where are you guys going?" she asked, a little curious. If she wasn't mistaken, she could have sensed mischief in each of the four boys' faces. Haru looked at his friends and then smiled, ever so innocently at her.

"Eiji said," he started pointing to the said friend, "that they're doing a haunted house at the abandoned mansion on the hill." Haru told her and Tsubasa remembered an old mansion right outside of the town that hadn't been occupied for years after the family of the town's founder moved into their new mansion in the town.

"Nonsense," Tsubasa frowned. She had been staying inside the town long enough to know how dangerous the old mansion was. "That place could collapse anytime soon, there's no way they would hold a haunted house there."

"B-but!" Haru's friend Eiji spoke. "There's a rumor saying there's somebody living in the house!"

"The more reason all of you are not going there to check it out," Tsubasa said, hands on her hips. She narrowed her eyes at them and spoke in a commanding voice. "The place is not safe; I don't want any of you to go there."

"Oh man…" all four boys said in return and Akamaru barked excitedly, despite his new friends' disappointment when he sensed his owner coming.

Kiba came holding a big paper bag full of foods and his eyes blinked when he saw Haru and his friends riding on his dog. He grinned. "Good thing I bought lots of foods." He looked at Tsubasa and his eyes stared at her and the empty plastic in her hand.

"What did you do? Eat those fish?"

Tsubasa opened her mouth to tell him what she had done to the goldfish when she sensed Haru and his friends trying to sneak away. She grabbed Haru's and Eiji's collars and pulled them off the huge dog. Tsubasa eyed the boys warningly and then sighed when her eyes met Kiba's quizzical ones. "Never mind. Let's just eat."

Kiba remembered the foods and he took out a small plastic container and tossed it to Tsubasa. She caught the food and her eyes widened when she saw the dumplings he bought. Kiba felt himself smiling, satisfied, and absent mindedly, his hand reached for the long box hidden in his pocket and patted it.

Xxx

"Thanks for sending him," Ishida smiled to Kiba and Tsubasa as he cradled his sleeping son in his arms.

Tsubasa nodded and smiled in return. "He and his friends wanted to sneak out and explore the old mansion," she told the doctor who frowned in worry.

"That place is dangerous," he said and Tsubasa nodded again.

"That's what I told them. You have to warn him about it," she said.

Ishida nodded and then looked at Tsubasa as if he had just remembered something. "Oh yeah, Tsubasa," he called out and smiled. "The rogue is here again, I thought you'd like to feed him."

Tsubasa's eyes widened excitedly and she nodded her head. Ishida told her to go to the back and Tsubasa turned to look at Kiba and pulled him to follow her. "Come on," she said.

"Where?" Kiba asked, both him and Akamaru following right behind her. He looked at their connected hands and thought deep. It didn't take long to reach the back of the clinic and Kiba looked around for whatever it was that Tsubasa was so excited about.

Then he heard a bark and his head turned and saw the small black pup that he had seen and fed not too long ago. The pup looked up at him and Tsubasa excitedly, his tail wagging happily. And upon seeing Akamaru, the big dog, the pup circled him, excited to see a friend.

Tsubasa released his hand and Kiba ignored the disappointment creeping into him and watched her walked into the back door of the clinic and reappeared a minute later, holding two bowls and a huge bag of dog foods in her hands.

She poured the dog foods into the bowls and placed one in front of the excited pup and the other one she held out towards Akamaru. "I thought you might enjoy this," she smiled to the huge dog and placed down the bowl in front of Akamaru who barked his gratitude in return.

Tsubasa watched the two dogs eating the food contently and Kiba felt his heart skipping a beat again looking at her. His insides were doing flips for no absolute reason and he felt himself getting dizzy. He sat beside her on the pavement and watched the dogs too.

"So he's the rogue?" Kiba asked, looking at the black pup.

Tsubasa nodded. "I haven't decided what to name him," she told him. The pup licked his bowl clean and looked up at her, happy that his stomach was now full. "He follows me everywhere." She continued.

"He does?" Kiba asked, grinning as he scratched the dog between his ears.

Tsubasa nodded, "He's somehow on his own and doesn't mix with the rest because of his color. He'll come here every morning and evening and would go to the restaurant at night.

"He's always hungry and asking for food," Tsubasa smiled. "And every night I'll give him some of the leftover food. He's quite picky too, preferring medium done steak to anything else."

She turned to face Kiba who was still playing with the small pup. Akamaru had finished eating his treats too and joined his owner and the pup. "I've realized I can't be a vet if I can't even get well with a dog. I'm doing my best now, but I'm still a bit scared to hold him."

Kiba faced her and smiled, "It's okay, that takes time," he said sincerely. She looked at him, smiled and nodded her head.

Kiba studied her. There was something about her when she was with animals that attracted him. The way she was very gentle with all of the animals, including dogs made him feel amazed.

He remembered when he had helped out in the clinic and watched her work on the animals. He had noticed the calm look on her face, the sincere, helpful smile she gave the wounded animals and the sparks in her golden eyes when she saw how healthy the animals were. Watching her, made him convinced that being a vet was truly in her nature.

And to be able to see her in her element, and when she had expressed her desire to get close to dogs, and the way she had smiled upon hearing his reply, Kiba felt like—

His thought came to an abrupt end when Tsubasa turned her head and met his eyes.

They stared at each other; his dark brown eyes over her golden ones. No words were spoken, as they sat beside each other, her bare shoulder brushing against his chest, his heart making more flips than he would have liked.

They were standing so close; he could practically smell her shampoo. The smell was so sweet, and reminded him of the first full blossom of cherry blossoms. Her eyes looked into his, searching, searching as if she was looking for a reason why she couldn't move her eyes away from his.

He couldn't move his eyes away either. He liked the way he could see his reflection in her golden orbs, the way his figure was over towering her, as if it could protect her, and the way his fingers itched to run through her soft hair.

Tsubasa's lips parted as if she wanted to say something, but he saw the way she swallowed, taking the words away from escaping her mouth. She was still looking at him, still searching, when she licked her lips.

Watching her, Kiba thought he could hear fireworks exploding in his head. He gulped as his hand began moving to rest against the nape of her neck and calmed her. Her hair brushed the back of his hand and they felt like silk slipping through his fingers.

He used his other hand to tilt her jaw to face him and cupped her cheek. He pulled her forward just as Tsubasa's slim fingers creeping on his neck to push him forward slowly.

They closed their eyes and felt each other's breaths. Their lips had parted and were only less than a centimeter apart when they hesitated. It was until Kiba had rubbed his thumb against her nape and she gave his shoulder a gentle squeeze, only then, they finally took what they had wanted from each other.

Xxx

Tsubasa had never imagined herself kissing someone at the back of the clinic, with two dogs witnessing them. And she had certainly never imagined herself kissing Kiba.

…

Okay that was a lie. Tsubasa had always wondered how it would be to kiss him, but she had always pushed the thought aside and considered herself crazy. But, even though that crazy side of her had imagined kissing Kiba, she had never thought they would have done so, at the back of the clinic, with two dogs watching over them.

He tasted of the chicken and ham sandwich he had for lunch, salty and cheesy. But Tsubasa didn't mind. She had never thought kissing Kiba feel…so good and…so right.

She felt his fingers twirling her hair while the other hand had glided down from her cheek to her waist and held her tight there. She had her fingers up in his hair, and the other one draped around his neck.

Their kiss was sweet and innocent, but took them a few moments to finally decide to pull apart. They glanced at each other; Tsubasa could barely look at Kiba from her blurry vision and the blood that was gathering in her face. Her heart pounded crazily against her chest, finally realizing what had happened and she took in deep breaths to calm herself.

"Um," Kiba started, clearing his throat as Tsubasa cleared hers.

"I-I think we better go," she said, avoiding his eyes. She noticed that the two dogs weren't there with them and Tsubasa felt a little glad. She would have felt embarrassed if the two dogs had watched them.

Kiba released her and she did the same and they both stood up. Tsubasa still couldn't bring herself to look at him and stared at her wristwatch instead. "I should be going to the restaurant," she told him and he nodded his head.

"Do you want me to send you?" he asked.

Tsubasa quickly shook her head. "No. Um… I think I'd better be alone t-to clear my head from this, um…" she couldn't say the word. Her face was so red; she thought she would have fainted.

Kiba nodded his head, understood what she meant. The kiss had happened out of nowhere, and they both should clear their heads and calm themselves. "Here," he said, unzipping his jacket and handing it to her. "It looks like it could rain soon," he said, looking at the darkening sky.

Tsubasa didn't object. She took the jacket from him and their eyes met when she thanked him. She felt herself blushing again and she stuttered her excuse to leave.

Finally after saying a quick good bye to Ishida and Kiba, Tsubasa walked towards the restaurant she worked and pulled the collar of the jacket closer to her. She breathed in his scent, of warm sun and grass, and felt herself relax.

She still couldn't believe what had happened between them, it was all so sudden she felt confused. What does it mean now that they've kissed each other?

She was glad she could take the walk alone to think clearly. And it was a good thing too that she remembered to invite him to the fireworks the next night. She would use the time to figure out what their…friendship was turning into now that they've closed one gap between them.

By the time Tsubasa reached the restaurant and walked into the changing room, she felt light headed and floating. Her face was pink and she had a goofy smile on her face when she passed by her workmates.

Eri regarded her suspiciously and raised an eyebrow when she saw the loose jacket she was wearing. "Isn't that Kiba's?" she asked and Tsubasa felt herself blushing hard and nodded her head slowly.

Eri smiled knowingly and patted the girl on her shoulder. "I like seeing you like this," she said and Tsubasa looked at her quizzically.

"You look much happier than you did when you first arrived here." Eri said, her smile widening, "And I think Kiba's appearance changed that."

Tsubasa thought about what Eri had said even after the latter had left the change room. Had she changed ever since Kiba had arrived?

She looked at the jacket in her hand and hugged it, taking in his scent to comfort her. She smiled to herself and pulled out a hanger, to hang the jacket in her locker, when something fell from its pocket.

Blinking her eyes curiously, Tsubasa picked it up and unfolded the paper and smoothen it out. She looked at the printing.

There were six boxes on the paper and had six pictures of what Tsubasa had guessed were bandits and the small descriptions beside every picture.

She saw X marks on five of the pictures and saw a circle on one of the picture. A skinny, tanned old man with rugged appearance, deep eyes and an X mark on his shaved head stared back at her from the paper.

Tsubasa tilted her head, eyebrows furrowed as she wondered about the man on the paper she was holding.

Xxx

Later that night, Kiba and Akamaru watched the restaurant below them from the roof of a building across the restaurant. From the brightly lit place, he could see Tsubasa walking from table to table, serving foods.

Kiba still couldn't believe he had kissed her again. The first time he did it, he didn't think much of it, since she wasn't in a correct state of mind. But the kiss they shared that afternoon…

God…it had felt so good kissing her…

He watched her from above, studying the way she was smiling and laughing at the customers, the happiness that was shining from her eyes, and her glowing skin.

For the past few days, he had been studying her; how happy she had looked talking to the town people, how excited she was telling him everything that she loved about the town and being normal and how wide and sincere her smiles were when she was in the clinic. Every time he heard her praise more of this stranger's town, Kiba bit his lips, fighting himself from saying anything that could ruin her happy mood.

He tried to compare the new her he was seeing and the Maneki girl he met earlier that year when she had joined his ninja group. There were so many differences in the two of them that it made his heart ache.

"She does really look happy here, huh, Akamaru?" he asked softly. Akamaru turned to face him and rested his huge head against his shoulder; a gesture Kiba knew was to comfort him.

He patted the dog's head and tore his eyes away from watching Tsubasa. He had never felt this much ache inside of him until he had met her and he knew why it was happening.

His eyes turned to his surrounding. The whole town was dimly lighted and his eyes fell on the darkness around the town. Then his eyes caught a glimpse of a tiny weak light far from the town. He narrowed his eyes, curious at the light that appeared in the darkness. The weak light illuminated what must have looked like a house to him, right outside of the town.

Kiba remembered the story of the old mansion on the hill that he overheard from Tsubasa and the boys. He wondered if the rumor that someone was living in the mansion was true or not.

* * *

so, as always, what do you guys think?

Do review! You know how much I love hearing from you guys!!


	26. The Smell of Danger

Hey guys!

Sorry for the long wait. But here is the latest chapter! Yay!

I do have to tell you guys though, in case anyone is wondering, I've decided the timeline for this fanfic is after Naruto's return and before Asuma's squad mission. (I don't want to spoil, but I'm sure many are aware of what happened). The reason why I'm doing this now is because when I started this fic (which was three years ago I think) there weren't many changes in the manga and I felt that the fic flowed nicely with the timeline.

But now, a lot of things happened in the recent chapters of Naruto manga (I find myself getting very emotional and attached to the comic now) that I thought if I don't make myself clear about the timeline, this fic will turn into an AU fic. I do not want that. (There is also a reason for this which I will mention later on in the story.) So, just bear with me okay? I'm very sorry for the confusion.

Anyway, moving on from that. Let's get back to this chapter! Enjoy!

As always, a million thanks to my wonderful beta-reader, Fanny-kun. Thank you so much!

-

-

"_Run!!!!!" Tsubasa screamed as loud as she could. She turned her head and saw the fear written in their eyes and the hesitant looks they had, keeping them from moving. _

_But the will to survive overcome their fear and all of them began to run for their lives, towards the door._

_Once they were out they would be free. Once they were out, they would be safe._-

Xxx

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**Cat and Dog**

Chapter 25

-

Kiba yawned and stretched as he walked down the stairs and grinned when he saw Akamaru in the courtyard. He watched the dog eat for a second before he made his way into the Inn's family dining room.

The Ishidas were already there and Kiba smiled and greeted them. He took a seat beside Haru and ruffled the boy's hair as Ishida's wife, Yuuko, passed him a bowl of rice.

"Thanks," Kiba said and picked up his chopsticks. Ishida looked up from his miso soup and glanced at Kiba.

"Are you still going to leave after the festival is over?" he asked.

Kiba turned and nodded his head. He swallowed his breakfast and spoke. "The festival ends tonight, I'll be leaving by tomorrow morning." He said and picked up his miso soup and took a sip.

Kiba thought about the fact that he was leaving soon. When he arrived at the town, he believed he could convince Tsubasa to go back to Konoha, but now…after watching how happy she was in the town, he still hasn't managed to persuade her that Konoha was a better place.

"You're Tsubasa's date tonight to the fireworks, right?" Yuuko asked him out of nowhere, bringing Kiba back from his thoughts.

He choked from his miso soup when he heard the words, and felt himself turning red from remembering the kiss he and Tsubasa shared the day before. Kiba cleared his throat, "Um, yeah, she asked me if I wanted to go together with her."

Yuuko nodded her head and smiled. Haru looked up at Kiba and frowned. "I wanted to go with Tsubasa-neechan, but Okaasan said I shouldn't disturb the two of you."

Kiba choked again on his food and cleared his throat for the second time, ignoring the warmth he felt on his cheeks.

Ishida pretended he didn't notice the teenager's face change of colours and smiled. "I don't think Tsubasa has a yukata to wear for tonight." He turned to his wife, "You should help her pick up one."

Yuuko nodded her head happily. "Oh yes, and accessories too," she said, sounding excited.

Kiba looked up from his meal when he remembered the hair ornament he bought. He had wanted to meet Tsubasa later that day to give it to her, but this was a good opportunity.

"Yuuko-san," he called out and took out the long, slim box from his pocket and placed it on the table. "I was thinking of having her wear this tonight," he explained, watching as Yuuko studied the contents inside the box.

Then a smile appeared on the woman's face and she turned to Kiba with a glint in her eyes, "I have a yukata perfect with this," she said excitedly. "She'll look beautiful!"

Kiba tried to fight the flush on his cheek and nodded his head in return. Haru on the other hand, watched the family visitor intently and frowned, deep in thinking.

Xxx

It was only 5:30 pm but Tsubasa was already fully dressed in her yukata, her hair and face fully made up. She sighed to herself, regretting letting Eri prepare her so early.

Ishida's wife had visited her earlier and brought the dark blue yukata she was now wearing. Tsubasa remembered Eri had kept on complimenting how the yukata and it's pink and purple flower prints made her look so pretty. The golden sash around her waist matched the hair stick Yuuko had brought along too.

"_That's from Kiba-kun," Yuuko told Tsubasa when the latter opened the long, slim box. The hair stick inside the box caught her attention. It was made of wood and had golden and brown feathers ornament on the top._

"_Feathers?" Eri asked, tilting her head to study the hair stick carefully._

_Tsubasa looked at it, twirling it on her fingers and spoke. "I think he meant for it to be wings (1)," she smiled to herself. _

The festival had already begun to start, but the fireworks display wouldn't begin for another three hours. Walking on the street filled with people dressed in yukata as well, Tsubasa made her way to the Inn.

She'd promise Kiba they'd meet at the park at 6, but Tsubasa wanted to surprise him, and show the yukata to Yuuko too.

Tsubasa was excited to spend her time at the firework festival with him. It would likely be the last time they would spend together before Kiba goes back. Thinking about the things they could do later in the festival, Tsubasa shook away the strange uneasy feeling she was having ever since she left the apartment.

She touched the feather ornament on her hair and smiled to herself. A blush crept on her face when she remembered their kiss. What would have become of them now that they have kissed? Surely they can't pretend as if nothing had happened. They are from different clans, and a relationship between them wouldn't work. But things are different now that she is no longer a Maneki…does that mean it could work?

Tsubasa blinked her eyes, her thoughts disrupted when she saw one of Haru's friends, Osamu, running towards her. Tsubasa stopped walking and her eyebrows furrowed when she saw the worried look on Osamu's face.

"Osamu-kun, what's wrong?" she asked when he reached her. The little boy took a deep breath and looked up at her, scared.

"H-have you found the others?" he asked, panting hard. Tsubasa shook her head.

"What do you mean?" she asked him.

Osamu looked hesitant for a moment, "Haru, Eiji and Ryou wanted to find a place they can watch the fireworks, and they left without me. I-I think they went to the old mansion."

Tsubasa felt as though her heard stopped beating for a second when she heard what Osamu said. She looked at the small frightened boy and frowned. "Are you sure?" she asked for confirmation. Osamu nodded his head.

Tsubasa frowned, alarm bells ringing in her head. "Stay here," she told him. "Don't go anywhere, do you understand me?"

Osamu nodded slowly and Tsubasa started running towards the said mansion. She was filled with dread and worry for the children, and it wasn't only of fear of the place collapsing.

Biting her lips, she clutched the weapon bag she strapped on her thigh under her yukata and fished out a folded paper that she found inside Kiba's jacket. Tsubasa studied the picture of a man that Kiba had circled.

She might not be a ninja anymore, but she can still feel the dangers around her.

Xxx

The old mansion on the hill used to belong to founder of the town, but when the man died, his son decided to move into a new house, closer to the town and left the mansion unattended.

The mansion was huge. It has its own compound, surrounded by dead trees and the road leading up to the mansion was no longer visible under layers of rotting leaves on the ground. The walls were dirty and covered with wild vines. The house was unkempt; there were broken windows, holes on the walls and roof. It looked dark and had an eerie feeling to it.

Tsubasa reached the mansion and took a deep breath. Her clothes were disheveled from running, her hair and make up messy also, but she didn't care.

Haru and the others were in there. And maybe the bandit as well.

She walked towards the mansion, stepping on the crispy dead leaves carefully, as not to make much noise. She was still panting hard, both from the running and the fear.

There was a pond at the front of the mansion, and the water was still and dark in color. There were dead rats floating on the water. It made Tsubasa feel sick.

But she felt even worse when she glanced at the entrance of the mansion and saw that the front door was open.

Taking a deep breath, Tsubasa walked into the mansion cautiously. She remembered all the missions she had been on, and tried her best to make her appearance unnoticed.

The floor was old and it squeaked when stepped on, but Tsubasa was careful. The inside of the mansion was dark, but her eyes had grown accustomed to it while she walked.

The place was quiet and Tsubasa tried to listen for any sound of movements. The sunlight coming through the small holes on the walls illuminated the place. Tsubasa walked as quiet as she could and checked every room on the ground floor.

It was then that she heard a small, soft sound coming from the floor above her. Tsubasa narrowed her eyes and quietly took out a kunai from her weapon bag as she ascended the stairs.

She heard more sounds. Tsubasa furrowed her eyebrows and tried to identify where the sounds were coming from. The sound was coming from one of the rooms on the first floor and it was muffled sounding…

Tsubasa neared the said room and clutching the kunai close to her, she peeked inside the room. Her eyes widened when she saw Haru and his two other friends, tied up inside the room, their mouths covered.

"Haru-kun!" Tsubasa ran into the room. Haru's eyes widened when he saw her and it was then Tsubasa realized that his eyes were filled with fear.

At the same time, Tsubasa sensed a presence behind her and before she could swing the kunai to protect herself and the kids, the man behind Tsubasa moved quickly, grabbing her and slamming her head against the wall.

The impact was so hard, Tsubasa felt the pain ringing in her ears and her vision became disorientated. Her hold on the kunai loosened but still strong-willed, Tsubasa aimed it at the man.

But the man was moving so fast; Tsubasa couldn't catch him through her blurred vision. The next thing she knew, the man had grabbed her by the head again slammed her on the floor, hard.

This time, the pain in her head was so unbearable, Tsubasa fainted.

Xxx

Tsubasa woke up with a bad headache. She winced at the pain and found that it hurt to move her lips, which were cracked. She smelt and tasted blood and winced again when her forehead throbbed painfully.

She didn't know how bad her condition was, but she knew the situation around her was dangerous. Opening her eyes a little, she saw blurry vision of the man who attacked her sitting a few feet away from her, leaning against a wall, a piece of paper in his hand.

Tsubasa took a deep breath and moved her head, ignoring the ache that was screaming in her head and looked at her surroundings. She was on the floor, all tied up, and Haru was beside her.

Their eyes met and Tsubasa felt her heart breaking when she saw the tears and the fear in the boy's eyes. Haru and his other friends were shaking from fright and she felt like crying too, watching them.

"Ah, you woke up," the man spoke, his voice was deep and menacing. Tsubasa turned her head, and this time with her vision getting clearer, she studied him.

The bandit looked just like the picture showed. He had bald, with an X mark on his head, but he looked far skinnier and sunken faced than compared to the picture she had seen. Tsubasa stared at his eyes, deep, black eyes that have witnessed many crimes and sins with no signs of remorse.

"So you must be the one who took my people away," the man spoke. Tsubasa kept quiet. Her mouth wasn't tied up like Haru and the others, but she knew she had better stayed silent.

"You're a ninja huh…" A pause. "Funny thing is, I don't sense your chakra," the bandit with the X mark laughed. "From those eyes," X said looking straight at Tsubasa, "I'm guessing you're a Maneki?"

Again, Tsubasa kept quiet. She broke the eye contact with X and glanced quickly at her surroundings. She saw the lights from outside growing dim, a sign that night was approaching. Her weapons case that she brought from Konoha lied beside X. Tsubasa frowned to herself. He had taken her only protection away from her.

X spoke again. "Do you want to know something?" he asked and waited for Tsubasa to answer. When she didn't, X neared her and pulled her head to face him. "Answer me." He ordered.

"What?" Tsubasa asked, irritated. She tried to move herself away from him, but he was far stronger. Tsubasa felt Haru whimper beside her.

"You have to appreciate the irony in life. The day you decided to visit me, is the day I decided to visit the town," X told her, cupping her cheeks strongly. Tsubasa glared in return.

"We planned to rob this town at it's peak of the festival. There are many people, no? From all around the country," X continued, a wicked smile plastered on his face. "Imagine the amount of treasures we could have collected."

X released Tsubasa and stood up. "But you went and captured my men and let me wait in the dark for nothing!" he shouted, tearing the wanted poster of him and his group angrily as he began telling her of their original plan.

Tsubasa didn't say anything and quietly moved her fingers into her sash to take out the shuriken she had hidden there. Stealthily, while X was telling her of his plan, Tsubasa signaled to the boys to keep quiet and used the blade of the shuriken to untie them.

X still didn't notice any movement she made and Tsubasa thanked her lucky stars that the bandit had his back turned on them while he talked. Quickly, she managed to cut the ropes to untie the boys and she moved on to her own rope.

X turned his head exactly when she had managed to untie herself and Tsubasa gripped on the shuriken hard, afraid that the bandit ninja would have realized what she had done.

But he didn't. "But, since you took away all my men, now I have to improvise the plan," he told her, an evil glint in his eyes. Tsubasa ignored him and played out her own plan in her head.

"The ninjas are looking for you," Tsubasa spoke to him, trying to lure him into her trap. Tsubasa gripped the shuriken tightly, her fingers touching its sharp blades, drawing blood.

X laughed. "Ninjas, huh!" he snickered. "Sending an amateur like you to catch me, Konoha must be basking in glory for creating such stupid—"

_Now!_

Tsubasa raised her hand and threw the shuriken with all her might towards X, while moving quickly for her weapons bag. X dodged the shuriken easily and, quick as a flash, grabbed hold of Tsubasa's hand and the weapons bag.

"Do you think I'm that stupid?" he asked and pulled the weapons bag away from Tsubasa's grip, only to realize that it was empty.

X looked up and saw many sharp kunais on the air, falling and aiming at him. He moved to avoid getting hit, but Tsubasa moved quicker than him.

Grabbing a kunai she hid, she stabbed X on his knee and using the last amount of energy she had, she kicked him down to the floor. While the kunais still fell from the air, X moved to shield himself and Tsubasa used the opportunity to stab one of his eyes.

X growled in pain, and Tsubasa quickly stood up, her blood rushing madly inside her body, she turned to the boys, who had looked at her helplessly.

At the top of her voice, Tsubasa shouted. "RUN!!!"

Xxx

Kiba frowned and glanced at his watch for the umpteenth time. The watch read 6:25 p.m. to him.

Tsubasa was late. They were supposed to meet at the park at 6, but she wasn't still there. Kiba glanced at the crowd of people around the park, but he didn't see her.

And Haru was missing too. The Ishidas were looking for their son when Kiba left the Inn.

_Maybe she spent some time with Haru, _Kiba thought to himself.

Akamaru barked beside him and Kiba turned his head to his dog. His eyes met a small boy sitting far from him, alone. Kiba narrowed his eyes suspiciously when he realized the boy was one of Haru's friends.

"What is he doing alone?" Kiba asked Akamaru. The boy didn't notice him, but Kiba had an ill feeling when he saw the worried look on the boy's face.

"Akamaru," Kiba called his dog and the dog nodded his head. A second later, Kiba Kiba scented both Haru and Tsubasa and traced their locations.

They were both in the same place, but Kiba's eyes widened. He was shocked when he sensed something else too.

"Shit!"

Xxx

"Run!!!!!" Tsubasa screamed as loud as she could. She could see the fear written in the boys' eyes and the hesitant looks they had, keeping them from moving.

But the will to survive overcame their fear and the boys ran for their lives, Tsubasa following right behind them, towards the door.

The stairs creaked under them and the growling sound echoed behind them. But without turning their backs, they continued running towards the light.

Once they were out they would be free. Once they were out, they would be safe.

Tsubasa saw how close they were to the exit and a part of her felt relieved when she saw the boys stepping out of the house. She ran as fast as she to be with them, to escape.

But the door seemed to get further from her. Tsubasa continued running. She pushed whatever energy left she had towards the door, but it seemed like her run was never ending.

The door was moving and Tsubasa panicked. She ran even faster, but she couldn't reach the door. The door was beginning to close, the light and the freedom slipping away from the open gap.

Tsubasa continued running. The door was her only hope. She ran, arms extended to touch the door knob, only to feel something stopping her from running.

She looked around and saw that she was surrounded by spider webs. Surprised and frightened, Tsubasa tried to free herself, but the strings moved on their own and circled her neck, choking her.

Trying to gasp for air, her hands automatically start moving to pull the strings that were choking her. But the strings were as strong as steel and she found it become more and harder to breath as they tightened around her throat.

"Tsubasa-neechannnn!!!!!!" A small and soft scream echoed in the background, but the words were clear to her and Tsubasa gasped as she broke off from the illusion.

Her eyes settled on the bandit who was clutching on her throat tightly, choking her. X looked at her grimly; both of his eyes were perfectly fine, free from any stab wound. "How stupid. Did you really think I would fall for such a low trick?" he mocked her.

It was then Tsubasa realized she was under his genjutsu. Gasping as much as air as she possibly could, Tsubasa tried to move her head and searched for the boys.

She saw that she was being held at the door, right between her danger and her freedom. Far from her, on the outside, she saw the boys, standing still, watching her.

"R-run!" she tried to scream as loud as she could towards the boys as she tried to free herself, to no avail.

"Yes run!" X shouted. "Scram off and tell the town they should wait for my arrival!" he laughed loudly.

Tsubasa tried to pry the hands on her neck and screamed again. "Haru!! Run!!!"

From a far she saw Eiji and Ryou pulling Haru's hands to run with them. But Haru stood still and shouted something. His friends began running, leaving him alone.

Tsubasa felt herself panicked. Why didn't Haru run? Who was going to protect him??!

"Haru! Run!! Save yourself!!" She screamed so hard she felt her voice turning hoarse. Tears fell from her eyes when Tsubasa realized how helpless she was.

X watched the tears falling down the girl's face and smirked to himself. "You seem attached to the boy," he laughed and pulled Tsubasa off her feet while still choking her. He aimed for the boy and swung Tsubasa towards him.

Without warning, Tsubasa felt herself being thrown by the bandit. She was flying in the sky, with a speed so fast, towards the still Haru.

Haru's eyes widened when he saw Tsubasa being thrown towards him, but he was too scared to move away. "Tsubasa-neechan!!!" he screamed instead, out of fear.

Tsubasa was afraid too. She was heading towards Haru and she could imagine how the impact of their hit would crush the boy. Tsubasa moved her body to slow her fall, but it wasn't working.

She was closing in towards Haru and Tsubasa could see the tears running down his face. A thought crossed her mind as she closed her eyes and braced herself for the inevitable impact,

"_Yue-chan!_ _Help!!"_

Xxx

Haru watched, dumbfounded, Tsubasa hurling towards him. He was scared, so scared, but his legs wouldn't move. He knew Tsubasa was trying to save him, but he wanted to save Tsubasa too.

But now, who could save _them_?

Unable to move, Haru closed his eyes and readied for the impact. But it didn't come. He heard a swift sound and a familiar bark beside him.

Slowly, Haru opened his eyes and saw the back of a person standing in front of him. He knew who the person was and a rush of relief ran through Haru and he smiled.

"Kiba-niisan!"

Xxx

Kiba caught Tsubasa in his arms right before she could hit Haru and he held her close. He looked at her. Her clothes were torn and her face was dirty and filled with tear and blood stains.

There were bruises on her forehead, cheeks and lips and fresh blood still dripping from her fingers. Her eyes were open wide, from fear and surprise from seeing him. Kiba felt anger boiling up inside of him when he saw how injured she was.

"K-Kiba," she mouthed, her voice hoarse. He gently placed her feet down on the ground but since she was still weak in the knees, Tsubasa fell.

"Are you okay?" he asked her, grabbing hold of her tight. She nodded her head slowly and tried to stand up.

"H-Haru?" she called out and Kiba turned to face the boy.

Haru began to cry and hugged Tsubasa's legs. With shaken hand, Tsubasa patted him and looked at Kiba. "T-thanks," she whispered, and Kiba saw the relief displayed in her eyes.

He nodded his head and turned his attention back to the bandit who had thrown Tsubasa. He could hear his blood boiling in his ears. "He's the last bandit I was supposed to catch," he explained to her and Tsubasa nodded her head.

Kiba faced her, "Get out of here now," he ordered, his voice serious as he glanced at the bandit, who was looking at him interestedly. Tsubasa furrowed her eyebrows.

"I-I don't want to leave you," she said, worried.

"I can't fight him while you're here. Take Haru to a safe place." He told her sternly. "Tell Ishida what is happening now."

Tsubasa was still refusing. "B-But what about you?"

"I have to fight him. It was my mission," Kiba answered, feeling himself getting a little irritated with her refusal.

"B-but h-he's strong. Y-you can't fight him alone." Tsubasa objected.

Kiba narrowed his eyes at her. "What can you do?! You're not a ninja anymore!"

Tsubasa blinked her eyes and looked taken aback by his words. Kiba frowned, feeling a little guilty for what he had said. He turned to Haru.

"Haru, be a man and bring Tsubasa back to the town," Kiba told the boy as he fished something out from his pocket.

"K-Kiba-niichan," Haru called out too, the in the same worried tone Tsubasa had been wearing on him.

"I won't be alone. I have Akamaru." Kiba said and Akamaru barked in return. "We'll be fine." He grinned, pulling out his head gear and showed to the boy. Kiba tied the head gear back on his forehead. It had seemed so long since he had worn it, and it felt so right to have it back on him.

"Now go," he ordered again, looking straight at Tsubasa who was still in a shock. Haru nodded his head and began pulling Tsubasa away. Tsubasa looked reluctant but gave a quick nod to Kiba before turning around to run.

Kiba turned his attention towards the bandit at the door of the mansion, feeling his adrenaline rushing into him, somehow excited to be able to complete his mission.

"So you must be the boss then?" Kiba asked, a smug grin on his face. He remembered what Raido had told him about the last bandit being a S-level.

But Kiba wasn't scared. He started on his fighting stance and watched the excited look on the bandit's face.

"Bring it on."

A/N: (1) Wings in Japanese are called "Tsubasa", which is of course, Tsubasa's name.

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So how was it? As you can see, this is my first attempt to write something which is really serious. I hope I did a good job. Please let me know. Any comments or suggestions are very much welcomed!

Thanks for reading (and reviewing, I hope) and Happy Holidays guys!


	27. A Ninja's Duty

Hey guys! It's been such a long, long, long, long, loooong time since I last updated right? I'm so sorry! I've been busy with college and exams, but fear not! Now I am on vacation!

Anyway, here's the next chapter. I hope you guys will enjoy it and I hope you guys can understand it well. Since I havent write anything for a long time, I'm scared I'm starting to rust!

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**Cat and Dog**

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Chapter 26

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The small hand that gripped Tsubasa's own hand was strongly pulling her forward. Panting hard, she kept running towards the town, watching Haru pulling her through blurry vision.

_If I were a ninja…I wouldn't have lost so much energy like this…_

Before they could reach the town, Tsubasa noticed a group of people who were heading their way. She recognized those people. "Haru! Tsubasa!" She heard Ishida shouted and watched them run towards her and Haru.

Haru and Tsubasa stopped running when Ishida, Yuuko and Eri reached them. Tsubasa noticed the frightened look on their faces. Yuuko quickly grabbed hold of her son and hugged him tight. "Are you okay?" Yuuko asked her son, her voice shattering. A tear fell from her eyes as she studied the dirt and the small bruises on his skin.

Ishida stood beside his wife and did a quick check up on his son. When he was sure that Haru wasn't grievously hurt, he turned to Tsubasa.

Eri grabbed hold of Tsubasa's shoulder and steadied her from falling. "You're injured, h-how?" Eri asked, as Ishida studied the bruises on her face.

"W-what happened?" he asked, just as shaken as the others.

Tsubasa panted hard. She opened her mouth, but she felt like she had no energy left to even speak.

Haru looked up and spoke. "T-there's a m-man in the old mansion," he began. "He's a b-bandit a-and…" While Haru was telling the story, Tsubasa was still panting hard, trying to catch her breath. Her head was throbbing painfully, her lips ached and her worry for Kiba grew. Her surrounding started becoming dark.

_If I were a ninja…_

Before she could realize it, Tsubasa fainted.

Xxx

Kiba would never admit it, but at times like this, having Shino and Hinata around wouldn't seem so bad.

He watched as Akamaru landed beside him after their _Gatsuuga_ failed and they were thrown back. _Damn guy…_, Kiba thought and gritted his teeth. He clenched his fingers. If he could sink his claws in that bandit's neck…

But the bandit wasn't that easy to be defeated. So far, all the attacks Kiba threw weren't successful. He couldn't manage to reach even an inch close to the bandit.

_But it's not impossible_.

Kiba smirked just as Akamaru barked at him. He nodded at the dog. Akamaru lunged towards the bandit, spinning in another _Gatsuuga_. The bandit that was only known as X, from the mark on his shaved head, laughed. "Again? This is boring!" he said as he easily evaded Akamaru's hit.

The _Gatsuuga_ crashed on the ground where X was a moment ago, but Akamaru wasn't there when the swirls of wind dissipated. X turned to where Kiba stood, but he wasn't there as well. X furrowed his eyebrows. He looked at his surrounding, and he searched for the Konoha brat and his dog or their chakras. But he couldn't find them.

Then he felt a change in the air and looked up. Another tornado-like jutsu was heading towards him. X moved to evade it, only to notice four more tornadoes were aimed at him in every direction. He looked up, ready to jump and evade it again, but stopped when another tornado appeared, aimed from the above.

He was startled just as the grounds beneath him shook and his eyes widened in surprised when the Konoha brat emerged from below. Smiling cockily, the brat punched him squared on the face right before the tornadoes hit him.

Kiba flipped backwards and landed a few feet away, Akamaru right beside him as he watched the cloud of smoke in front of him, created from his and Akamaru's attacks. He smiled proudly at their success of creating the false _Gatsuuga_ to fool the enemy.

When the smoke disappeared, Kiba watched, somewhat unfazed, as X stood there unhurt. "That was lame," X commented, spitting the blood from his cracked lips that Kiba had punched.

Kiba shrugged and smirked anyway. "Just don't tell Naruto I copied that move," he said and readied his fighting stance.

X laughed. "You're too proud brat. You're not taking me seriously," he said, his eyes narrowed. "Now it's my turn to attack." Kiba kept quiet and furrowed his eyebrows, ready to face the enemy. X smirked and his figure started to disappear, little by little. Kiba's eyes widened and Akamaru barked.

Kiba watched his surrounding, waiting for a change to happen. Then—

_SWOOSH_.

Akamaru barked.

Kiba evaded. He knew an invisible attack was aimed at him. Without hesitating, he jumped and delivered a kick. There was no one that he hit, but Kiba felt it and he smiled. "You forgot that we're the Inuzukas. We can track you." Kiba spoke as he turned and delivered another kick, but felt it was stopped.

An invisible force pushed him off and Kiba flipped backward and landed beside Akamaru. He watched X made his appearance again, looking displeased. X cracked his fingers and looked at Kiba with loathe. Then with a smirk, he opened his palms as wide as he could and slammed them on the ground.

The ground began to shake. It started slowly, but the tremor grew intense. The trees around them began to wobble too, and soon, branches after branches started falling on the ground, before the trees follow suit.

Kiba watched the dilapidated house in front of him began to collapse. He turned to face X who was laughing. Kiba looked around for a place he and Akamaru could hang on. But there was none. A loud grumble was heard as the grounds shook harder, with cracks appearing beneath X's hands.

The grounds crumbled under him, the cracks were getting bigger, creating endless pits. Kiba and Akamaru made a run for it, escaping themselves from being swallowed into the depth.

_It has to end somewhere…_, Kiba thought and looked around as he continued running. Then, he saw it. A few feet away from him, the ground looked stable. X's jutsu didn't reach up to that point. "Akamaru, we can go there," Kiba called out to his dog.

But there was no reply.

Kiba turned around and his eyes widened when he saw that Akamaru wasn't anywhere to be seen. The pits had grown bigger and deeper, the grounds disappearing behind him. A thought crossed Kiba's mind and he grew worried. _Shit! Did Akamaru fall?_

The cracks were reaching him and Kiba bit his lips. He couldn't move forward without Akamaru. But there was nothing else to step in order to find him. Kiba was left with no choice as he felt the ground under him crumble. He glanced to X who was floating above him, watching the scene. Then, Kiba dived into the darkness below him.

"AKAMARU!!" he shouted. Above him, he could hear X laughing happily, pleased at the situation.

Then, just as he was falling deeper into the depth, he saw his huge dog jumping on the falling rocks, heading upwards towards him. Akamaru barked and Kiba's eyes widened.

When Akamaru neared him, Kiba stepped on him and pushed himself up in a jump towards X in the sky. He thrust out his kunai, gripping it tight as he reached the surprised bandit. Kiba wrapped an arm around his neck and pointed the kunai there.

Then it stopped.

The loud grumble stopped. So did the tremor. The pits disappeared. The trees stood around them, the old house just behind. Akamaru watched as his master had the enemy at his throat.

X frowned and glared at Kiba who stood behind him. "How did you know?" he asked. Kiba tightened his hold on X's neck, making it hard for the latter to breathe. He neared the point of the kunai dangerously close to X's throat.

"My sensei's specialty is _genjutsu._ We threw up blood when she trained us to interrupt any _genjutsu_ and destroy it." Kiba explained. "I hated it, but it helped me pass chuunin."

X laughed. "Ah, just a chuunin, huh?" he grinned. "I wouldn't have guessed," he said sarcastically, insulting Kiba. Kiba narrowed his eyes and brought the kunai tip to touch his skin.

"Same goes to you. I would've thought you were C-rank instead of S-rank." He retorted. "Why would an S-rank be interested in doing petty crime like robbing anyway?" he asked.

X glanced at him. "I'm not interested in the money, if that's what you think. It's part of the plan." He grinned. "Get involve in some _petty_ crime, just to get the ninja radar on me, kill them, do more _petty _crime, kill the citizens, then get more ninjas to come and kill them too." X explained. "It's part of the requirement."

"Of what?" Kiba asked, looking disgusted.

X smirked. "To join the _big club_ of course." He laughed again and looked at Kiba. "But I should thank you for acknowledging my level," he said and Kiba watched him suspiciously. He could feel something bad was about to happen.

Just then he heard Akamaru barked and Kiba quickly turned his head. Akamaru was sprawled on the ground, looking so much in pain. Kiba felt furious. "What did you do?!" he asked.

X laughed. "How can I touch him when I am here with you?" he asked. Kiba eyed him warily and heard Akamaru barked again in pain. Without a doubt, Kiba jumped towards his dog, trying to find the cause of the pain. He furrowed his eyebrows. Akamaru wasn't injured.

But he looked hurt.

"What's wrong Akamaru?!" Kiba asked, worried. Akamaru barked weakly, but before Kiba could decipher what his dog meant, he was suddenly thrown away and crashed into a tree.

Kiba looked up to see X near him, but before he could stand up, a heavy pressure pushed him down and Kiba fell to the ground. He tried pushing himself up, but the pressure was far stronger. In his struggle, Kiba saw X looking at him in delight, one of his palms held out open. "I've had enough warm up with you." He smirked. "I'll let you taste the real deal now."

Then X closed his fingers, formed his palm into a fist and laughed.

Suddenly Kiba felt the heavy pressure inside of him, pressing on his body and his organs. It felt like his bones were crushing, his insides were bursting and his body was being compressed. He tried to fight it off, tried to determine if it was another _genjutsu_, but it wasn't. The pressures that were pushing inside him made him feel like his brain would explode anytime soon.

Helplessly, Kiba shouted in pain.

xxx

The sounds of the loud whispers going around woke Tsubasa up. Her eyelids fluttered open and she stared at the people who were surrounding her.

"You woke up," Eri was the first one who spoke, smiling at her.

Tsubasa pushed herself up to sit and winced when her head throbbed. "Be careful," Ishida said. "The bruises on your head do look quite bad. You should rest." He told her.

Tsubasa kept quiet and looked at the people in the room. She recognized that she was in Ishida's clinic, in one of the treatment rooms. She saw Haru sleeping on Yuuko's lap on a couch, Eri and Ishida stood beside her, with an older man that she recognized to be the Head of the town.

"W-where's Kiba?" the words that came from her mouth sound dry and she cleared her throat. Eri handed her a glass of water and exchanged looks with Ishida and the Head.

"Um," Ishida spoke. "Kiba-kun hasn't return. H-He's still fighting off the bandit."

Tsubasa's eyes widened and she felt her stomach turn. _Oh God._ "Y-you're telling me h-he's still—", Tsubasa couldn't finish her sentence. So many thoughts ran into her mind. "D-did anyone go help him?" she asked.

"No," the Head spoke. "But we did—" he paused when he saw Tsubasa started to get up from the bed.

"W-wait Tsubasa," Ishida stopped her, his hands resting firmly on her shoulders. He shook his head, "You can't go. You have to stay."

Tsubasa looked at him shocked. "What do you mean I have to stay? I have to help him. Do you even know who he's fighting?" she asked. Her hands began to shake and she felt so worried, it was starting to make her nauseous.

"We heard from Haru," Ishida told her and the Head nodded. "The bandit is a ninja and—"

"Exactly! That's why we have to help him!" Tsubasa said and tried to push off Ishida's hands. "He's an S-rank. He's too strong!"

Ishida nodded his head. "And that's why we can't go out there. W-we know Kiba is a ninja…he can handle this."

Tsubasa eyed him warily. "W-what? No! No he can't!" She rebutted. "Kiba…h-he's a chuunin…and even though he fought off those people from Sound before…h-he can't do this alone. O-only Naruto can…and that's only because h-he-he—" Tsubasa started to mumble in fear.

_Oh God._ Tsubasa knew how strong S-rank enemies were…even Fumie-sensei had difficulty with some of them…and she saw how badly injured Neji, Chouji, Naruto and Kiba were after they fought off the Sound-nin. And if the bandit was anything like the Akatsuki she had been hearing…

A tear dropped from her eyes and Tsubasa looked at Ishida, "P-please…let me go. I need to help him," She begged.

Yuuko stood up from the couch and stood beside her husband as Ishida spoke. He shook his head and frowned. "Y-you can't do anything Tsubasa. You're not a ninja anymore."

The words came out like knife stabbing through her heart. It was like a wake-up call to her. It hurt so much because it was true. She was useless now. Even Kiba said the same thing to her.

_If only I were a ninja…I could have helped._ But the thought that Kiba was alone facing the bandit scared her. _What if…What if…_

"B-but we can't sit here…w-we have to help him," Tsubasa said, wiping the tears on her face. "It's not that easy to fight off a-a—

"Y-you don't have to worry," the Head spoke again. "We already asked Konoha to help us from any attack—"

"That was Kiba! He was the one who took the mission," Tsubasa explained. "It-it was his team's mission to catch the bandits. But h-he's alone now. W-we have to help him," She said, gripping tight on Ishida's sleeve.

"Taki-san had already told them the situation, they're sending more ninjas," Yuuko tried to calm down Tsubasa and the Head, Taki, nodded his head. But Tsubasa didn't believe it.

"It's too far from here." Tsubasa shook her head. "T-they can't make it in time. We have to help him!" She shouted, feeling desperate.

Ishida and Yuuko looked helpless. Eri stepped forward and tried. "Tsubasa, we can't do anything to help. We-we don't have that power the ninjas have."

Tsubasa frowned. "It-It doesn't matter. If all of us go, we-we can help. We-we have to help him. We have to." She kept repeating the words. "Y-You don't understand…tha-that guy is strong, h-he—"

Eri grabbed hold of Tsubasa's shoulders and shook her. "That's the thing Tsubasa. He's too strong for any of us. We're only going to be a burden to Kiba-kun."

Tsubasa shook her head, "T-that's nonsense." She said and wiped the tears that kept falling off her eyes with her shaken hands. _If I were a ninja…we wouldn't be having this problem…_

"It's not." Eri said. "Listen Tsubasa. We're normal people. The reason why we hire ninjas is because we aren't capable of doing those things that they can. We can't meddle in their fights."

Taki nodded his head. "It had been this way for ages. The wars are left to the ninjas. They are our protectors. In return for our safety, we do not interfere with their fights because we would only give more trouble to them. That's how it works for us people."

Ishida added. "We have faith in the Konoha ninjas. That's why we don't meddle in. We can't jeopardize them."

Tsubasa narrowed her eyes. "That…that is _wrong_." She frowned and shook her head. "Y-you're just being scared and selfish! T-the ninjas are sacrificing their lives and all you can do are to watch?!" she asked. She didn't believe these people. How stupid of them to say that! They're just letting go of their responsibilities to help and making up excuses too!

Eri shook her shoulders hard. "Tsubasa!" she shouted, her eyebrows furrowed. "Think about it!" Eri told her. "If you were a ninja and you were fighting off an enemy far stronger than yourself, then a few villagers decided to help you but they weren't even as strong as you. And the enemy took them as hostages because they're weak. Won't you feel troubled then?! That you have to save and protect those hostages and also defeat that enemy at the same time?!" Eri asked her.

Tsubasa kept quiet, startled. Eri continued. "We know that consequences. We're not making excuses, but this is how it is for us!"

Tsubasa stared at her in silence. She understood what Eri was saying. Slowly, Tsubasa nodded her head. Eri sighed and nodded. "Being normal like us…we would've given up everything if we could become ninjas and help protect the people." She told Tsubasa.

"But since we're not…we just have to believe in them." Eri smiled weakly. "Trust in Kiba-kun. I know somewhere deep inside you, you believe that he can do it too."

Wiping her tears, Tsubasa nodded her head again. But just as she did, a huge sound of explosion was heard. They were startled.

Yuuko walked to the window nearest to her and looked. Then she gasped. "I-it's burning." She said, her voice shaking.

Ishida walked hurriedly towards where his wife stood. Outside the window he could see the visitors from the festival running around to see what had happened. Some of them started pointing upwards and Ishida followed their lead. On the hill, right out of the town, a huge fire was engulfing the place.

"W-what happened?" Taki asked. Ishida turned around to face the older man.

"That mansion your family used to live…where Kiba-kun is fighting now…it's on fire." Ishida explained.

Upon hearing this, Tsubasa felt her heart stopped beating.

Xxx

Kiba tried to concentrate hard, even under the pain of the pressure. The pressure was so intense he couldn't even lift a finger up. But he knew he has to do something quick before he and Akamaru are crushed to death.

_Think. Think. Think!!_

From the corner of his eyes, Kiba could see a blurry vision of X holding out his hands to face each other, and slowly, little by little, he began to close the gap between the hands. Then Kiba heard Akamaru howled and he knew the bandit was torturing his dog. Kiba glared at him, the only thing he could do, and watched as X smirked and further close the air gap between his hands…

_Wait! That's it!_

Kiba closed his eyes and concentrated even harder. He tried to gather his chakra, focusing them on one point. He only has one chance to do this. He has to do this correctly otherwise it'd be over. A few seconds later, after Kiba was certain that he has the right amount of chakra gathered at the specific point, Kiba concentrated on letting the chakra out.

A small flicker of fire appeared in Kiba's palm and he quickly open his eyes. Gathering the small bit of energy he has left under the compressed pressure, Kiba flicked his fingers. The fire began to move from his palm to his body, becoming bigger and bigger, until it actually covered him. Kiba felt the pressures on his body and inside him vanished as the fire engulfed him. X turned around in surprised just as Kiba broke free from his control and stood up to face him.

Kiba extended a hand and formed a fireball. Then quickly he threw it to Akamaru and watched as the fire swallowed up the dog too. A few moments afterward, Akamaru was able to break free from X's jutsu.

X, on the other hand looked both surprised and impressed that someone had actually survived his killer jutsu. He turned to face Kiba.

"Your jutsu requires wind to create the pressure. Wind is weak against the element of fire," Kiba explained with a smirk. He flicked his hands again and the fire that covered both him and Akamaru vanished.

X laughed. "Don't get too over yourself kid." He said and frowned. "More pressures can wipe out your tiny fire," he told him, palms wide open, ready to attack.

This time Kiba was ready. "It won't work again, if I take out all the wind in this area," he said and glanced quickly at Akamaru. The huge dog nodded his head and barked. Kiba prepared two huge fireballs in his palms just as X started the jutsu on him again.

The pressure had returned, but this time Kiba fight it off with his fire. "N-now Akamaru!" Kiba shouted, as he fought off the pressure and threw the fireballs at Akamaru's paws. At the same time, Akamaru stomped on the ground powerfully, covering the soil with the fire.

Soon the ground beneath them began to melt and turn into red, boiling liquid. X stared in surprised at the presence of lava and watched as it grows bigger. The lava spread the fire to the surrounding, the dead leaves on the ground, the grass, and the trees. X frowned and began compressing the air to give more pressure to the kid, but he could feel the air was losing out and consumed by the fire.

Akamaru pounded his paws on the ground again and the lava spread even further. It reached the old mansion; the fire easily devoured the house, making a huge explosion as it collapsed.

The heat and the smoke were getting to them and Kiba began to pant for air. But he kept a poker face to the bandit. "Now you have no air to work with," he smirked and lunged towards X and attacked.

X evaded Kiba's punches and kicks and spoke. "You're losing out air too," he pointed out. "And energy. You can't keep this for a long time."

Kiba frowned, annoyed that his weakness was easily spotted. He continued his attacks but X dodged them effortlessly. It was when X noticed that Kiba was gasping for air; he finally made his move and attacked the chuunin. With one powerful kick, X sent Kiba crashing into the pond in front of the mansion. It was the only thing that wasn't affected by the lava and fire.

X watched the scene in front of him and started laughing. "Oh this is just perfect!" he said looking down at the chuunin inside the murky pond. "Guess what?" He said, as he extended his hand and opened up his palm. "I can control the oxygen in the water, and your fire is weak against the water." X grinned and fisted his hand. Akamaru ran towards him from behind to attack, but X easily swept him away.

Inside the pond, Kiba moved upwards towards the surface. Just as he was about to come out for air, he felt a strong pressure pushing him back down. Then he heard what X said and he tried hard to fight over the pressure. But the pressure intensified, pushing him deeper into the water.

Xxx

The lights in the town, especially during the festival, were so bright; it made the whole town glow at night. But the fire that was spreading on the hill just right out of town was glowing far brighter than the town.

Tsubasa walked out of Ishida's clinic and watched as the people gathered together, every one of them were looking at the fire outside the town with questions displayed in their eyes. "What's going on out there?" she heard someone asked.

"Oh my," Yuuko gasped behind Tsubasa. Eri held her breath and squeezed Tsubasa's shaken hand, knowing how anxious she was feeling inside.

"Taki-san!" someone called out for the Head. "The fire is at your family old mansion." A man spoke. Taki nodded his head, clearly aware of what was going on at the said place. "A-aren't we going to do anything about this?" the man asked again.

The older man looked at Ishida who shook his head. "Right," the Head spoke. "Inform everyone not to near that place," he said to the man who blinked at him in surprised. "The ninjas are coming soon, they will handle this."

"N-ninjas?" the man asked and furrowed his eyebrows quizzically. "Why would the ninjas be here?"

The Head frowned. He didn't answer the question. "Just go and inform everyone." He ordered the man who nodded and left quickly. The Head turned to face Ishida, a worried look appeared on his face. "I wonder what's taking the ninjas so long. We can't let it go on like this,"

Ishida nodded his head. "I feel the same way too," he said and clenched his fist. He turned to face Tsubasa, who was standing still, quiet and unresponsive. "Tsubasa?" Ishida called out, a little worried.

Tsubasa didn't hear what Ishida had said. She was shaking. Tears fell down from her face. So many thoughts ran through her mind when she saw the fire. Was Kiba safe? She knew fire was his element…did he cause this on purpose or—or is he losing…If-If he were losing…who was going to save him? Who was going to save the town? Who was going to stop the bandit?

The people in the town couldn't do anything about the fire…how can they even near it to put it off when the bandit was there?

_If—If I were a ninja…if Yue-chan was here…we could use our elements to put off the fire…If I were a ninja I could—_

"Tsubasa!" Ishida shook her and brought her back from her thoughts. Tsubasa stared at him; her eyes were dark and serious. "A-are you okay?" Ishida asked her. Tsubasa shook her head.

"How long are we going to sit here and watch?" Tsubasa asked him, more tears ran down her cheeks. "W-when are we going to do something? S-something bad could happen there" her sobbed.

Ishida looked uncertain. He shifted his eyes. "W-we have to wait until the ninjas are here."

Tsubasa didn't like the answer. "They are going to take forever to come. We have to do something" she spoke clearly now, determined that they still have to help Kiba.

"If we could, we would Tsubasa," Ishida answered. "But we're not capable."

"H-how would you know? Are you going to let him die?!" Tsubasa snapped, causing other people to turn and watch. She turned to face the Head. "We have to do something. Otherwise, _he_ will attack us next," she said, her eyes narrowed.

Taki looked just as uncertain as Ishida, and it made Tsubasa more anxious. "If-If you're going to let him die out there, I'd rather join him, then be a part of you murderers" she sobbed and wiped her tears angrily.

She pushed Ishida's hands off of her, turned on her heels and started running towards the hill. Eri and Ishida ran and called out after her, but Tsubasa ignored them. She knew that she wasn't a ninja now, that she wasn't capable of helping Kiba fight off the enemy…but she couldn't stand staying still and keep on wondering and worrying. She'd rather be there, and lend out a hand in any way she could. If they could make it out alive, Kiba can yell at her for how long he wants…but if they couldn't make it…she'd be happy that she doesn't have to live a life full of regret.

With the small amount of energy she had left, Tsubasa continued running, while Eri and Ishida followed behind, trying to catch her. Tsubasa ran faster, determined not to be caught.

She was close to the foot of the hill when something blocked her--

A kunai flew and landed a few feet exactly in front of her. Startled, Tsubasa stopped running. Her eyes widened when she saw the paper that was tied with the kunai. It had Konoha leaf's symbol.

Then Tsubasa heard the familiar shifty sound that ninjas usually make while speed travelling. She looked up to the sky and saw two figures, illuminated by the fire, jumping and moving from roof to roof to the trees. They moved so quick that she lost the sight of them when she blinked her eyes.

Tsubasa stared, dumbfounded. Eri and Ishida managed to reach her and they too wondered why Tsubasa had suddenly stopped.

Help had finally arrived.

Xxx

Kiba was losing air.

The pressure X put on him was pressing him inside the water and his brain frantically searched for a plan. If he could use a _Getsuuga_, he could drill his way out from the pond…

With that in mind, Kiba gathered the last amount of energy he had to focus on the jutsu. He tried to fight off the pressure and tried to spin his body. But unfortunately, X read his move and lowered his palm, putting more pressure inside the water.

Kiba gritted his teeth and used his energy to push off the pressure. It worked in the beginning as Kiba was able to fight it, but then his brain and his lungs started to scream for oxygen and helpless, his body began to take over his wills.

Kiba gasped for air, which caused him to swallow in the murky water. On survival instinct, he used whatever energy he had left to be able to get on the surface, but the pressure remained unchanged.

Then he started to lose consciousness and his body became rigid. He was drowning.

Above the water, X watched in delight. One more ninja to add to his dead list, he thought with a grin.

Akamaru barked in horror and ran towards the pond. He had to save his master. But X noticed him and quickly with his power, he threw the dog back. Akamaru flew backwards and crashed into a burning tree. The impact caused a huge branch to snap off from the tree and it started to fall onto the huge dog.

Then, an unknown force hit the huge branch and caused it to burst into tiny pieces before it could hit Akamaru. X narrowed his eyes in surprise. He felt a figure coming up to attack him and X moved his hand from placing the pressure on Kiba to defend himself. The figure continued hitting him with a kunai, moving speedily as he went. X smirked, impressed with the strength of the attacker.

From the corner of his eyes X saw the dog pulling out his master from the pond. Distracted, X missed a chance to defend himself and received a powerful kick that sent him flying further back.

Kiba coughed and gasped for air as Akamaru pulled him out of the water. "T-thanks Akamaru," he coughed again and panted.

"Are you okay?" a voice asked him and Kiba looked up to see the back of a person standing in front of him, performing a jutsu. In a second, a massive volume of water flooded the place and put off the fire. The water disappeared when the person ended the jutsu and Kiba watched as the person turned to face him.

He saw the Konoha head protector, and the jounin vest. Then he noticed a female body, short, brown hair and a familiar voice. "F-fumie-san?" he asked, eyes narrowed in surprised. Omura Fumie, Tsubasa's teacher, nodded and extended her hand.

"You okay there Kiba-kun?" she asked and Kiba nodded back. He grabbed her hand and stood up. A shifting sound was heard next and another jounin appeared beside Fumie. Kiba recognized the person from the huge scar on one side of his face.

"Why are you and Raido-san here?" Kiba asked, as he greeted Raido. Raido offered a small smile and a nod.

"I told you that the mission was left to the jounin. We were looking for him in a town nearby when a message came to us" Raido answered him.

Fumie nodded. "The Head of this town was asking Konoha for help, so we head here as fast as we could." She said and took a glance at the burnt surrounding. "Who caused the fire?"

"Me. Long story," Kiba said and wiped the dripping water off his face. "Yuck, I stink." He frowned. "Anyway, thanks. You guys came at the right time. I thought I was a goner."

From afar, X stood up from his crash and cracked his fingers and his neck. He frowned, unhappy at the arrival of the aids. Raido broke into his fighting stance, getting ready to attack again. "You did good Kiba, now just leaves this to us." He said before he started towards the enemy.

Fumie nodded and smiled at him before she joined Raido in the attack.

"Tell Tsubasa I said hi."

Xxx

Ishida blinked as Kiba and Akamaru suddenly landed right in front of him. "Ki-Kiba-kun!" he shouted in surprised. "W-what happened?"

Kiba rubbed his aching shoulder and shook off the excess water from his hair. "The Special Jounins arrived and kicked the bandit's ass in minutes. They already took him back to Konoha." He explained.

He noticed Tsubasa's presence and turned to see her staring at him, just as surprise. "Hey Tsubasa," Kiba called her and smiled. "Fumie was there and she told me to say hi to you."

Tsubasa didn't reply him. She was still staring at him in shock. She didn't even blink her eyes while she studied his wet and bruised self.

Kiba frowned and waved a hand in front of her. "Did you hear me?" he asked.

Finally Tsubasa spoke. "Idiot," the word came out and she sobbed. She wiped the tears that ran down her cheeks and frowned. Idiot. Idiot. Idiot! Here she was worrying sick for him…and he just came back with that childish smile on his face and…and…and…

…She was just glad he was alive. "Idiot…" Tsubasa muttered again, covering her face as she cried. Kiba watched her in confusion just as more people started to gather around them.

"She was worried sick for you," Eri explained to Kiba with a smile. He nodded, neared Tsubasa and patted her head gently. Then he pushed her hands away and looked into her golden eyes.

"Stop crying." He told her and smiled. "It's over."

* * *

So? What do you guys think? Did I do okay or am I rusting away? Eek! I apologize for any mistakes or confusion I might have created for you when you read the fights. I am not very good at writing actions and fighting movements. And in case anyone is wondering...I am not sure what Kiba's real element is, I'm guessing it's fire from his attitude, so the attacks that involved fire were made up by me.

Do review and let me know alright? You know how much I love your reviews!

Thank you so much and have a good day everyone!


	28. I Know What I'm Doing

Hey guys! I know this is a sad time, knowing that Michael Jackson, one of the greatest legends in the world, had passed away...but I bring new chapter to cheer all of you!

With this short note, please enjoy the chapter!

Oh! And as usual....a thousand appreciation goes to my beta reader Fanny-kun! If you are reading this again, have a safe trip okay??

**EDIT:** I just realized that there was something wrong with this chapter. Thank you to claaamchowder for pointing out that the quotation marks were missing. I'm so sorry for causing you confusion! I've fixed it.

If you guys do see anymore technical problems please let me know!Okay now you can enjoy the chapter!

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**Cat and Dog**

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Chapter 27

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"Thank you," Tsubasa said to Ishida and his wife, "thank you so much for everything," she repeated and bowed her head. She looked up at them again and smiled. There had been so many things the couple had done for and taught. So many things that there weren't words to describe how much she appreciated their help.

Ishida smiled in return and shook his head, "No, we should thank you actually, for saving Haru," he said and patted the boy's shoulder. Yuuko nodded in agreement. Tsubasa looked down at the youngest Ishida and blinked her eyes in surprise when she saw him sobbing.

She squatted and looked Haru straight in the eyes. "It's okay; I'll come and visit you." She smiled. "Then, I'll show you all these cool moves I can do, and I'll introduce you to my cat too." Tsubasa told him, "You're going to like her, she can talk."

Haru looked up at her, his eyes widened with curiosity, "Really?" he asked, wiping the tears from his eyes. Tsubasa nodded her head and Haru smiled in return. "I can't wait then," he said and hugged her. Tsubasa hugged him back and felt her eyes begin to sting with tears.

She turned to face Eri next, and hugged her roommate. "Take care of yourself," Eri told her and she nodded. "And when you come back next time, bring a few good looking shinobi with you too," she whispered. With a glance a Kiba she added "And one who isn't younger than me".

Tsubasa laughed and nodded her head, "I'll try my best," she smiled. "Thank you for everything too." She said and hesitated for a moment before she continued. "And, I'm sorry for the way I acted yesterday."

Eri waved her off, "It's okay, it was nothing," she said with a smile. Then she turned to Kiba, "Now you take good care of her, you hear?" Eri grinned and Tsubasa turned red.

Kiba nodded his head, "I will," he said and Tsubasa felt her face turn redder. It took her a few seconds before she calmed herself and was able to look at him straight in the eyes. Kiba stared at her, "We should be leaving then," he said and she nodded.

She turned to face the people whom had help took her in when she ran away She smiled at the people who had taken her in when she ran away from Konoha and smiled at them. She raised her hand and waved them goodbye, before she turned around and started to leave the town, heading towards Konoha.

Xxx

_Kiba__ walked towards his room at the inn, wiping his __which was wet from the shower he had just taken. He was feeling lethargic from the fight but after bathing, he felt a little refreshed. He slid open the paper door and stepped into his room._

_The first thing that he saw was Akamaru soundly asleep, looking healthier than earlier when they were battling. Then he saw Tsubasa, sitting cross-legged in the middle of the room, head tilted up, and staring straight at him._

_"He's fine," she told him, "Ishida treated his injuries and fed him while you were bathing. He was __so tired, he fell asleep as soon as he finished eating," Tsubasa explained. Kiba nodded his head and towel dried his hair. "Oh, and Yuuko-san sent you_ _some dinner, you should eat it while they're still warm," Tsubasa added, pointing to the tray of meal beside her._

_Kiba__ turned to face her, "Have you eaten?" he asked. __When she didn't reply to him and he turned his head, only to notice that she was staring at him. Kiba furrowed his eyebrows and followed her gaze, and realized that she was staring at his bare chest. He smirked, feeling amused, before he cleared his throat. Tsubasa blinked her eyes and her pale cheeks reddened when her eyes met his._

_She cleared her throat and her eyes moved to stare at her feet. "Um, yeah, I ate already." Then she looked up at him again. "How did you get Kenji's necklace?" she asked._

_He looked down at the shiny pendant dangling from the chain around his neck. "Oh." No wonder she was staring. Kiba looked up at her. "He lent it to me, to help me find you." He explained and sat down in front of her just as she pulled out her own identical pendant. Tsubasa was smiling._

_"No wonder it's so warm," she spoke, more like to herself than to him. Then she slipped back the necklace inside her t-shirt and looked at him again. "Thanks, for saving me and the village." She smiled sincerely._

_"Oh, sure."__ Kiba nodded his head and frowned when he noticed the bruises on her forehead and the small white band-aid on her lips. "Do they hurt?" he asked._

_Tsubasa__ shook her head. "Not really," she told him. "You? Do you feel pain anywhere?" she asked out of concern, her golden eyes staring straight into his __brown ones._

_"No." he shook his head and she nodded in return. Both of them kept quiet. There was an awkward silence between them and Kiba couldn't take it. "So, uh, we missed the fireworks huh," he started to break the ice._

_"There were no fireworks…" she corrected. "Everyone was too mesmerized watching the fire you created." She chuckled lightly. _

_Kiba__ smiled too. "__It was that bad, huh?" he asked as he closed his eyes and tried to picture the situation a couple of hours ago._

_Tsubasa__ nodded her head, "Yup…You __had me really worried," she said softly._

_"You were worried?" he asked, and somehow hearing it made him want to do a__n imaginary summersault in the air. _

_"I was crying the whole time," Tsubasa said honestly. _

_"Oh" he said. It would be a good idea to tease her about it, but he couldn't __bring himself to do it. "I see. I'm sorry then." _

_Tsubasa__ smiled softly and shook her head, "It's okay," she said. They were quiet for a while again and Kiba couldn't find anything else to talk about. He was starting to wonder why she came to his room when he heard the girl cleared her throat and inhaled._

_"Kiba," she called out softly, "There's actually something I have to tell you," she said, answering his unasked question. Kiba looked at her in confusion. "Um, today's event made me think a lot about things," Tsubasa continued and she bit her lips in hesitation. He watched her as she took a deep breath before she spoke again. "It made me realize the limitation I have as a normal person and," Tsubasa paused._

_"And I think I want to go back to Konoha with you," She continued. "To be a ninja again."_

Xxx

Tsubasa realized Kiba was being strangely quiet.

They were walking across a clearing; two hours had passed since they left the town. Two hours had also passed without Kiba saying a word. The journey back to Konoha would take at least half a day, if they were to travel at the speed of ninjas on mission, but since they are walking normally, Tsubasa wondered how long it would take to reach home.

She hoped it would not take more than a day. If Kiba was going to be quiet throughout the journey, she would have to kill herself from the boredom and curiosity. She has no idea why he was so kept to himself. She knew him as a boisterous type of person since they were small, so it was quite unsettling to see him so…reserved.

_Maybe he's thinking about the fight from last night?_ Tsubasa tried to deduce. _Or maybe he is still tired from that fight?_

Maybe it would have been better if they had stayed back in the town for a day, even Ishida had suggested it. But Kiba was the one who was fixed on returning as soon as possible.

"Hey Kiba," she called out. Kiba, who was ahead of her, paused and turned around. Tsubasa offered a small smile. "Um, are you okay? Do you want to rest?"

He raised an eyebrow and stared at her as if she had asked the stupidest question. "I'm fine," he said before turning around. "If we can make it to Ameagari before sundown, we can rest there."

Tsubasa thought about what he had said. Ameagari was a town not too far from Konoha. If they stay there for the night and start moving again in the morning, they would most likely reach Konoha by noon. Then she realized an important matter. They're going to stay there for the night. The two of them, and his dog.

A blush crept on Tsubasa's face as uncalled images appeared in her mind. She shook her head and cleared her thought. She stared at Kiba's back. He was wearing his usual mission clothes, the Konoha headgear tied securely on his head. She wondered about his change of mood. He was okay last night, but this morning…he was different.

And he hadn't spoken a word to his dog either Tsubasa realized, taking a glance at the huge white dog walking beside its master. Akamaru was quiet as well, either he was feeling the same thing his master was, or he was, just like Tsubasa, trying to think of a reason why Kiba had turned so aloof all of the sudden.

Xxx

Another two hours had passed since Tsubasa last spoke. The sun was now high above them and Kiba wiped the sweat from forehead and frowned. The nearby town was still an hour away by foot, and Kiba could not take the heat much longer.

He stopped walking and turned around. Tsubasa stared at him curiously. "Let's take a break here," he panted as he spoke, pointing to a shady tree not too far from them. Tsubasa nodded her head quietly and followed his lead. Kiba sat under the tree and leaned against its thick trunk. Akamaru sat beside him, resting his head on Kiba's lap.

"The town Kinyou is nearby," she started a conversation. "We can rest and eat there," she suggested.

Kiba glanced at her and then shook his head. He wiped the sweat away again and reached into his bag for a water bottle. "No it's okay. I'm just a little tired. But I'll be fine." he said and he ignored the way she raised her eyebrows curiously at him. It was the truth. He was feeling a little tired. It was probably from the fight and he hasn't completely regained his energy. He wanted to stay at the town for a day, just to rest. But his plan changed when he saw the eagerness in Tsubasa's eyes last night.

"Are you okay?" Tsubasa asked him for the second time that day. She looked at him intently. "You're sweating and panting a lot," she pointed out. Kiba took one last gulp of his water and pulled the bottle away. He wiped his mouth and turned to face her.

"I'm fine," he answered, still panting hard. "It's the weather. It's hot."

She looked at him and then glanced at the sky and the sun above. He knew what she was thinking. It wasn't that hot. She wasn't sweating much, he noticed. And she didn't even look like she was tired from the walk. Kiba didn't understand it either. Even though he didn't recover his energy fully, normally he wouldn't be this weary and out of breath just by walking. And now that he thought about it…his body felt a little off too…he didn't know what or why…but he felt somewhat uncomfortable.

"Maybe you're still tired from the fight," Tsubasa guessed. "When we reach Kinyou, we can rest there for a whole day," she told him and offered a small smile. Kiba watched her and felt irritated. He frowned and shook his head.

"No it's okay." He said and a cough escaped his mouth. "We need to reach Ameagari before sunset," he said and stood up. They should start walking again. Walking helped him in the last five hours to keep his emotions away. If he were to release them, or tell Tsubasa what he's been thinking, it might change her mind to come back to Konoha.

_But then again, isn't that what you want?_

"Kiba," Tsubasa called behind him. He heard her sigh. "What's really going on with you? You look like you have something to say to me, but you won't say it,"

Akamaru stood beside him and stared. He knew his dog was curious too. But Kiba was determined not to tell. "Nothing." He answered and started to walk. "You're imagining things. Let's get going."

She narrowed her eyes and jogged up to him. She stopped him in his track and looked annoyed. "You're wearing my patience thin." She frowned and Kiba could tell that she was starting to get angry. "Now seriously, tell me what's bugging you!"

Kiba was getting annoyed too. Can't she just leave him alone? "Nothing!" he said a little too loudly. Then he coughed again and he absentmindedly moved his hand to rub his chest. "There's nothing bugging me," he continued and cleared his throat.

But Tsubasa was observant. "Why are you coughing?" she asked, tilting her head quizzically. "Are you sick?"

The worried look in her eyes made him pause for a second, and then he was annoyed with her again. He glared. "I'm fine. You're being paranoid." He said and continued his walk. But he didn't get far when Tsubasa's hand grabbed his and stopped him.

"Look, I know you. I know something's bothering and you're not telling me." She told him, a serious tone in her voice. "You better tell me what's going on, or I swear I will make this trip unbearable to you."

That irked Kiba so much he gritted his teeth. That was it! He took a step towards her and frowned. "Fine." He gritted his teeth. "Why do you even want to return to Konoha?!" he finally exploded. Tsubasa stared at him, surprised at his question.

"I told you. I want to be a ninja again—"

Kiba scowled. "But you were happy in that town. Didn't you want to be normal? Wasn't that why you ran away?" He asked, stepping closer to her. Tsubasa backed away in reflex, and she kept quiet when she found herself unable to answer him. Kiba continued. "You said you didn't want to end up doing all the dirty work your family has to do. If you're going back to be a ninja, then you just wasted the effort you put in to convince me that normal life suited you."

Tsubasa opened her mouth. "Y-you thought that?"

He pulled his hand away from her and narrowed his eyes. "Yes. You were friendlier and happier when you were in that town." He pointed out and paused. Kiba hesitated to say the next words, but after a few seconds he continued. "I thought it was for the better." He looked straight into her eyes as he said it. "Things are going to be the same way they were before when we return."

Tsubasa stared back at him, speechless. Then Kiba started to walk away and Akamaru followed him.

xxx

Tsubasa stood there for a second as his words sank into her before she too followed his trail, staying mum as she walked.

She was speechless at his words. She didn't know that her decision to become a ninja again was having such effect on him. She thought he'd be happy that she decided to go back. But by the way Kiba was saying it; it was like he would have preferred it for her to remain a normal person.

_"You were happier"_, her mind replayed the words over again. Tsubasa felt her cheeks warming up. She was surprised that Kiba had compared the old her and the new her. She didn't think she had changed that much from her old ninja self but she did remember Eri telling her that she did look happy when Kiba arrived at the town.

_Then…it was because he was there…_ Tsubasa thought._ Maybe…maybe that was what he saw and misinterpreted…_

Tsubasa looked up and stared at Kiba's back. She opened her mouth to call his name, to tell him what she was thinking. But her action was cut off when she heard Akamaru bark and saw Kiba stopped in his tracks, a hand covering his face.

Suddenly an unsettling feeling began to creep into her and she quickly walked to his side.

Tsubasa's eyes widened when she saw the blood dripping from Kiba's nose. He looked bewildered as he wiped the blood and stared at his hand. He glanced at her, his eyebrows furrowed questioningly and he began to use his sleeve to wipe the blood.

Quickly, Tsubasa searched her bag for a pack of tissues and she began pinching his nose. Kiba stared at her in surprise but she didn't waste any time talking to him as she hurriedly pulled him to a nearby tree. She pushed him to lean against the tree and forced him to sit down, all the while pressing her hand on his nose.

"I can do it by myself," Kiba told her and Tsubasa nodded her head. She released her hand and offered him a new sheet of tissue. He thanked her, tossed the bloodied tissue away and pressed his nose with the new tissue she provided.

"Lean forward," she instructed him. "Don't tilt your head back, unless you want to inhale your blood. And don't lie down,"

Kiba furrowed his eyebrows, almost finding it funny the way she was instructing him. "I know," he smirked; his annoyance with her began to dissipate. Akamaru barked at him, telling him to get a new tissue and Kiba watched, somewhat amused and shocked at how quickly the tissue soaked up his blood. "Do you think it's the hot weather?" he asked and coughed.

"Could be," she nodded, passing him another tissue. She frowned worriedly and racked her brain to try to think of anything that could relate to Kiba's situation. "Just sit still and hold it for five minutes," she told him, feeling frustrated when she couldn't find an answer.

They sat under the tree in silence for a few minutes until Kiba pulled the tissue away and was certain that he wasn't bleeding anymore. He coughed and smiled convincingly at Tsubasa who was still frowning. "You don't look well today," she pointed out. Kiba opened his mouth to answer back when suddenly he paused, his eyebrows furrowed.

Tsubasa raised an eyebrow and watched him curiously as he stood up, walked a few steps away and then spat. Then he placed a finger inside his mouth, took it out a second after and studied it. "My gums are bleeding," he said, looking at it, confused.

"What?" Tsubasa asked and walked towards him. "That's strange," she frowned and tried to think of any reason it was happening to him. Kiba on the other hand, took his water bottle, gurgled the liquid before spitting the blood out. He coughed again.

The cough was more consistent now, Tsubasa observed. She watched him rub his chest again before taking a gulp of his water. He looked like he was having a hard time breathing and talking too, she noticed. He looked like a cat trying to cough up a hairball. Seeing him in this condition was making her more worried.

"Let's go then," he said as he continued the journey. Tsubasa nodded weakly, and a fear began to engulf her. She was worried if something would happen to him.

She was right to worry.

For the next few minutes while they walked, Kiba kept on coughing, clearing his throat, drinking more water, and rubbing his chest. His face was turning pale and Tsubasa grew more worried. At one point, Kiba was coughing terribly that he was gasping for air. She quickly reached his side, her eyes widened in fear. Beside them, Akamaru began barking in panic for his master.

His coughing fits weren't stopping and he was gasping badly, like a fish out of water. He began to stumble and Tsubasa quickly held onto him as he collapsed.

Horrified, she quickly unzipped his jacket and tried to give him space to breathe. "W-what's wrong?" she asked him, her voice shaken. Kiba shook his head, and wheezed terribly. His face was white, his lips were turning blue. Thinking quickly, Tsubasa took hold of his wrist--his skin was cold too, she realized--and found his weak pulse. _Did he injure his organs from the fight yesterday?_ Tsubasa wondered. Something on his hand caught her attention and Tsubasa took a good look at it, only to find that his fingernails had turned blue too.

Something clicked inside her head and a suspicion emerged. _Don't tell me—_

With her hands shaking in horror, Tsubasa quickly gripped Kiba on his shoulders. "K-Kiba, do you feel any pain from any part of your body?" she asked.

Kiba coughed and placed a hand on his chest. Then, without asking for his permission, Tsubasa pushed his mesh shirt away. Her eyes widened when she saw bruises on his chest that weren't there the night before.

An alarm bell rang in her head. She felt like her heart was at her throat. Tsubasa turned to look at Akamaru, who was still barking in panic. "Akamaru!" she called him out and he hushed. "D-did the bandit do anything to Kiba? Did he force him to eat anything? Inject anything?" she asked anxiously.

Akamaru shook his head. Then the dog barked and Tsubasa understood. The bandit only had Kiba trapped in some kind of pressure. But that couldn't have caused this effect on him, Tsubasa realized. She thought hard about last night's event. Other than a few bruises from the punches and the kicks, Kiba looked fine. She remembered studying him for any injury when she was in his room and he had come back from his bath—

Wait. Kiba was wet when he came back from the fight. Tsubasa glanced at the shinobi, whose face was getting paler by the minute and she turned her head to the dog. "Why was he wet yesterday?" Tsubasa asked. She knew it seemed irrelevant, but any information right now could help her figure out what was wrong with him.

Akamaru barked and told her. Kiba was thrown into a pond and the bandit trapped him inside. Tsubasa furrowed her eyebrows. The pond?

She tried to picture the pond at the collapsing mansion. She remembered it was dirty and murky. And there were floating dead rats inside it—

That was it! It was still a little farfetched, but it answered her suspicion. "I-I think I know what's happening to Kiba," she said, almost breathlessly. "But, but the only way to treat him, is to bring him back to Konoha,"

Tsubasa bit her lips. Konoha was still too far from here. By the time they make it there, it would be too late. A tear dropped from Tsubasa's cheek. If she were a ninja, she could have used her medic jutsu to help him. Her fingers clenched on Kiba's jacket tightly. Her eyes widened when she saw his eyes were closed. "Kiba! Kiba!" she called out, softly slapping his face to get a reaction. But Kiba didn't move. She found his weak pulse and knew she had to move fast.

She wiped the tear from her face and bit her teeth. _Damn it! Damn it! Damn it! _Kiba's condition was worsening and she needed to get him treatment fast. But how could she?

Then while she was cursing the situation they were in, Akamaru suddenly barked at her. Tsubasa furrowed her eyebrows and turned to the huge dog, "What?"

Akamaru barked again. _Ride on me. I can reach Konoha faster._

Tsubasa blinked her eyes. "Really?" she asked and watched him nod. She thought about it, Akamaru could carry Kiba and still move faster and this is the only way they could save Kiba. Slowly she noded. "You're right. You can do it," she said and smiled softly.

The dog barked at her again and bent his legs so she could place Kiba on his back. Tsubasa frozed. Helping Kiba was one thing, but to touch a dog… she gulped. "Uh," she started and instead of worrying for the unconscious shinobi in front of her, Tsubasa was consumed with her fear of canine.

Akamaru realized this and he raised his head and looked at her. He barked again. _You can't be scared._

"I'm not!" she answered defensively and frowned.

Akamaru nodded and barked again. _Then hurry up, or he'll get worse, _he told her and pointed his head towards Kiba's body. Tsubasa gulped and found herself agreeing with the nin-dog. She has to do this, otherwise Kiba would die.

Convinced, Tsubasa took Kiba's arm, placed it around her shoulder and slowly, she pulled him as she stood up. Akamaru waited and watched as she pushed his master's body onto his back. Tsubasa moved as carefully as she could, all the while being completely aware not to touch the huge dog. And when she had successfully placed Kiba onto his dog, Tsubasa took a step back and nodded her head.

"You should go then," she told him.

Akamaru looked up and quickly barked. _Why aren't you getting on?_

Tsubasa blinked her eyes at him. "I-I can't get on," she said, looking horrified.

The nin-dog barked at her in reply. _He'd fall off if no one steadies him, _the dog reasoned.

She scowled when she saw sense in his answer. She stared intently at the dog who replied her gaze before he lowered his head once again at her. Tsubasa knew the gesture. When an animal bowed his head to a human, it means that the animal was ready to accept the human as his master or to give permission to the human to touch or tame him.

Taking a deep breath, Tsubasa took one step closer to Akamaru. Awkwardly, she held out her hand towards him, but hesitated for a second. She bit her lips. Why was it so hard? She wondered and remembered all those fights with Kiba, the hatred her family had and the legend between the cats and dogs. Then, she closed her eyes and finally moved her hand and touched the top of Akamaru's head.

His fur was soft, and he was really warm, Tsubasa felt. She opened her eyes and let out a sigh of relief. Then she smiled. It felt like an achievement to her, like she managed to crush a huge wall inside her. She could see her reflection in Akamaru's eyes and watched him nodding his head at her, encouraging her. With another deep breath, Tsubasa reached for his back and mounted on him. She sat comfortably behind Kiba and positioned herself and his body securely on the dog's back so they won't fall.

Once she was sure that they were good to go, Tsubasa gave Akamaru a gentle pat. "Let's go," she said and smiled. "We're counting on you Akamaru."

Xxx

Kitai Sho frowned and pulled out the necklace from inside his shirt. He touched the pendant and felt how warm it had become. He blinked his eyes. "That's strange…"

"What?" Kenji asked as he slurped on his noodles. He was so busy digging into his bowl of ramen that he didn't notice the confused look playing on his teammate's face.

"My pendant feels hot," Sho pointed out and upon hearing it Kenji froze. Sho turned to him, "How is yours?"

Kenji took his time to answer, swallowing the noodles as slowly as he possibly could. Sho raised an eyebrow questioningly at him and by the time Kenji opened his mouth to answer the question, Sho had already figure out what was going on. "Save it," the redheaded snapped, eyes narrowed dangerously. "If Kiba has your pendant—"

"Look!" Kenji spoke, trying to defend himself. "I want him to find Tsubasa! I don't think—"

Sho ignored him and jumped off his stool. "If Kiba has your pendant and Tsubasa is wearing hers, then that means they're nearby." He said and furrowed his brows. Then, turning on his heels, he began to run. Shocked at Sho's reaction, Kenji had no choice but to follow him.

"Wait! Where the hell are you going?!"

Naruto looked up from his bowl of hot miso ramen and his eyes widened. "Hey!" he called out after the two shinobis who had run away without paying for their meals. The blonde ninja scowled in defeat and Chouji laughed at him.

Xxx

When Akamaru landed in front of Konoha Hospital, the first people Tsubasa saw were Sakura and Ino. They stood there and stared back at her in shock.

"W-what?" was all that Sakura could come out with. She was just walking out of the hospital when she bumped into Ino. The two of them started their usual bickering but before they could throw any insults to the other, something fell from the sky, not too far away from where they were standing. Once the cloud of smokes subsided, they could make out the figure of a big dog and two people mounted on it.

"Akamaru," Ino called out and she let out a gasp when she saw Tsubasa. "Y-you're back!" she pointed out just as Tsubasa jumped off the dog. Then the blonde's attention fell on the body Tsubasa was dragging off the hound and she grew serious and began to near the Maneki girl.

Sakura followed suit and their eyes widened when they saw an unconscious Kiba. His face was pale, there were bruises on his skin, and overall he looked horrible and ill. "What happened?" Sakura asked just as Ino rushed back inside the hospital to call for assistance.

"He needs help," Tsubasa said. From the corner of her eyes she saw Ino running back towards her, a few medic nins and a stretcher following. "He couldn't breathe and collapsed." Tsubasa added.

"What happened?" Sakura asked more, eyebrows furrowed worriedly for her friend. The medic nins began carrying Kiba onto the stretcher and started bringing him into the hospital. Tsubasa took a look at them and glanced at Sakura and Ino before deciding to follow the medic team. Confused and curious, the two kunoichi followed after her.

"His pulse is weak," Tsubasa heard one of the medic nin said. All of them rushed into the emergency room and she followed them.

"Blood pressure is low," another one informed.

"Call Shizune-san here," one of them ordered.

"We need to find out the cause first before we treat him," someone suggested and the others nodded in agreement.

Tsubasa stepped forward. "Wait!" she shouted and gained the attention of the medic nins. "I know what's wrong with him," she said quickly just as Sakura and Ino reached her. The medic team stared at her in surprise. Tsubasa bit her lips, suddenly finding herself hesitating.

One of the medic nins stepped forward and grabbed her arm. "You have to leave this room," he pushed her. Tsubasa's eyes widened.

"No!" she frowned and pushed the man away. She walked closer to the team and opened her mouth. "I-I think he's suffering from internal bleeding," she started and the team looked at each other, surprised. Sakura and Ino stepped forward to face the other girl.

"What makes you say that?" Sakura asked.

Tsubasa spoke hastily. "His skin is cold, he was sweating a lot, he had nosebleed and bleeding gums and there are bruises on his chest and nails…" she explained and watched as the medic nins studied Kiba's body intently. "I-I think it's because his blood isn't clotting properly and the blood is filling up his organs, his lungs especially, and you need to clear that so he can breathe."

Ino raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean his blood isn't clotting properly?" she asked and the medic nins looked at her curiously too.

"I think Kiba unintentionally ingested rat poison," Tsubasa admitted.

Sakura blinked her eyes, "What?" she asked in surprise. Just at that moment Shizune walked into the emergency room and her eyes widened when she saw Kiba and Tsubasa. Shizune opened her mouth to ask what was going on when one of the medic nins turned to face the cat mistress.

"What do you mean, _you think_?" he asked.

"I mean," Tsubasa cleared her throat. "I didn't see him ingest it, it's just an assumption, because yesterday, while he was fighting a bandit, he was thrown into a pond filled with dead rats, and I think the poison which killed those rats may have intoxicated the pond,"

Another medic nin narrowed his eyes at her. "But it's just an assumption, you're not sure. We can't treat a patient based on assumptions."

Tsubasa nodded her head before she turned and furrowed her eyebrows seriously. "But I'm sure that was the cause." She added. "Only rat poison could cause these symptoms."

"But it's too reckless to conclude that he was poisoned." A medic nin objected. "If we try to treat him for the poison without examining him properly, we could deliver a wrong treatment and kill him." he explained.

Sakura nodded her head. "Besides, if he had swallowed the poison yesterday, a normal poison reaction would only appear a few days later." She said and looked up at Tsubasa. "Kiba's situation could have occurred from other conditions as well."

Tsubasa frowned and bit her lips. "I'm positive about this," she said, more firmly. "Kiba is different. He's an Inuzuka. And for a ninja clan that specializes in animal mastering, like the Inuzuka, and—" she paused when she realized what she was about to say. With a deep breath, Tsubasa continued, "—the Maneki, like me, we inherit a few of our animals' genetic traits."

She went on to clarify. "The poison would attack both his human and his dog traits, and twice as fast. That's why the effects are appearing sooner than normal."

The medic nins looked at her in hesitation and Tsubasa narrowed her eyes. "If you wait any longer he's going to die!" she told them. One of the medic nins raised his hand and placed them above Kiba's chest. His hands started to glow and the man frowned.

"She's right, there is a lot of blood gathering in his vital organs," he told the team. "We have to clear them now."

"You have to treat the poison too, otherwise the blood is going to keep on filling up his organs," Tsubasa said.

One of the medic nins standing close to her narrowed his eyes. "We can't treat him for poisons that we haven't properly examined."

Tsubasa frowned. "It's going to take hours for you to detect the poison and by the time you can treat it, he's going to die!" she shouted angrily. "I know what I'm saying." She said determinedly, her eyes burning with confidence.

There was silence for a second before one of them stepped forward. It was then Tsubasa realized that Shizune was there. The older woman nodded her head, and having understood the conversation, she made a decision. "Very well, we will treat the poison and clear his organs as well."

The Maneki girl sighed in relief and nodded her head. "And he needs twice the dosage of vitamin K, to counter the poison." Tsubasa pointed out too, much to the displeasure of the medic team. She ignored their glares and focused on Shizune. The woman smiled and nodded her head.

"Please wait outside," she told Tsubasa and gestured to Sakura and Ino to take her.

The two kunoichi nodded their heads and pulled Tsubasa out of the emergency room. Once the door closed, Tsubasa sat down on a nearby seat. Not only was she exhausted, but she was scared too. Clasping her hands tight, Tsubasa closed her eyes and brought her hands near her face. She started to pray.

_Please let him be okay._

* * *

So...as usual, tell me what you guys think? Do review okay? You know how much I love hearing from you guys!

Oh...and the informations about the rat poison...well I'm not an expert so I did my research on the internet. I hope that I've gotten it all correct but if I am not 100% accurate, please let me know okay?

Have a nice weekend!


	29. Change

Hey guys! It's 10th October, which means it's MOE day! if you're a Japanese-freak, like me, you'd know. but if you don't, feel free to look it up! Anyway, in the spirit of MOE and since Kiba made his appearance in the latest chapter this week, in a colour page too, to boost!, I'm bringing in the latest chapter to add into the special occassion!

Thousands of thanks to my beta-reader, Fanny-kun! You're awesome!

Enjoy!!! and Happy MOE day!!

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**Cat and Dog 29**

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Chapter 28

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"Tsubasa!"

The girl looked up when she heard people calling her name. Her eyes widened when she saw Kenji and Sho jogging up to her.

"You're really back!" Kenji said as he panted.

Sho looked up, his face was red from running. "What happened?"

Tsubasa smiled sourly. "It's a long story," she said but her smile turned sweet when she looked up at her teammates "But I'm glad to see you guys." She leaned forward and hugged the two of them. "I missed you," she admitted.

Surprised, Kenji and Sho glanced at each other before they too, embraced her. "We missed you too," Sho said, hugging her tight. When they pulled apart, Kenji placed his hands on her shoulders and looked straight into her eyes.

"You have to tell us what happened, Tsubasa," he said.

Sakura and Ino looked up and nodded their heads. "We want to know too," Sakura said looking worried. Tsubasa glanced at all of them and slowly nodded her head.

Xxx

An hour later the four of them watched as the door of the emergency room opened. Tsubasa held her breath when she saw Shizune stepping out of the room and she quickly stood up and made her way towards the older kunoichi.

Shizune stopped, glanced at the group, and smiled. "Kiba's going to be fine."

Tsubasa let out a huge sigh of relief and Akamaru barked happily beside her. "That's good to know," she said and thanked Shizune.

"They're transferring him to a room upstairs, you can visit him there," Shizune smiled. Tsubasa bowed and thanked her again. "You did really good," Shizune praised her. Tsubasa blinked her eyes, just as Shizune walked away, surprised at the comment.

Kenji clapped Tsubasa on the shoulder and laughed, "You just saved a life today," he grinned. "Come on, let's go see him." He said and Tsubasa nodded her head.

"Sakura-chan!" they heard someone shouted and Sakura turned to see Naruto running towards them. Behind him, a few people had followed.

Ino blinked her eyes in surprise. "Shikamaru? What are you doing here?" she asked.

Shikamaru frowned. "We heard about Kiba," he said.

Behind him, Shino and Hinata stepped forward. "Tsubasa-chan," Hinata's eyes widened and Tsubasa smiled at her. "H-how's Kiba-kun?" Hinata asked.

"He's fine," Tsubasa answered, "They're transferring him to a room upstairs," she explained.

"Good to know he's okay," Naruto said. "What did he do? Got beat up badly?" he joked and laughed before receiving a punch on the head by Sakura.

"Idiot! This is a hospital! Keep your voice down!" she scolded. Naruto winced and rubbed his sore head. He looked up to face his friends and his eyes caught Tsubasa's. Naruto blinked his eyes and then he grinned.

"Hey! You're back!"

Xxx

It was getting dark outside, Tsubasa realized as she stared out the window from Kiba's hospital room. She sighed and turned to look at Kiba's sleeping figure on the bed, watching the oxygen tube right below his nose and to the tubes from his hand to the packets of blood and water hanging above his bed. She studied his face, he looked better than he was earlier that day and Tsubasa felt really glad.

She had stayed there for a few hours now, just watching him. Kiba's friends, Sho and Kenji had stayed for a while in the beginning, but they left when Kiba's sister came to check on her brother. Tsubasa wanted to leave as well, but Hana had kept her.

"I think he'll heal faster knowing you're here," Hana said with a smile. Tsubasa wanted to object but the older woman stopped her. "The first few hours are crucial; it'd be good if someone stays with him." Hana explained. "We're running out of staff at the clinic, so I can't be here, and our mom is away too."

Tsubasa didn't need a thorough explanation. She nodded her head and agreed. Hana thanked her and promised to be back before it was late. Now, Tsubasa took another glimpse at the dark sky outside the hospital and looked at her watch. She sighed.

Akamaru, who sat beside her seat, tilted his head and looked at her curiously. Tsubasa smiled. "Don't get me wrong," she started. "I don't mind staying here," she told the dog and looked at Kiba. "I want to be here when he wakes up." She admitted.

"I'm just--" Tsubasa added and paused. "--thinking about what is going happen after this," she said. "I'm beginning to understand why Kiba was upset with my decision to return. Things aren't going to be the same as it was before in the town, you know," Tsubasa whispered. She glanced at the dog and smiled bitterly.

Akamaru understood her and his perky ears drooped to the sides. He whimpered and placed his head on Tsubasa's lap, hoping to share her sorrow. Tsubasa's eyes soften and she stroked his fur affectionately. She was surprised at herself that she was able to adapt to a dog's touch so soon. But she was glad that she had overcome her fear.

"You're probably wishing you could hop onto his bed and lie beside him, huh?" she asked. "But with your big size, you might just crush him," she joked and chuckled. "I bet you miss having him carried you inside his jacket," she said and smiled. Akamaru wagged his tail at her, his eyes shone happily.

"You can lie beside me and keep me warm," Tsubasa suggested. "And I'll keep you company."

Akamaru's head shot up and he barked. She thought he was replying her, but then realized that he was informing her of a new visitor. Tsubasa turned her head to the door and her eyes widened when she saw Kiba's mother.

xxx

Inuzuka Tsume considered herself different compared to the other kunoichi in Konoha. Not only was she a mother and a ninja, she was also the Head of the Inuzuka clan. Or _the _Bitch, she used to joke sometimes. It wasn't easy, Tsume admitted, to be a single parent, a dedicated jounin and a respected Head of Clan. These titles are so different in nature that she had spent most of her life trying to make sure they are never intertwined.

But life tends to be complicated and sometimes Tsume found herself stuck between two of her responsibilities. Like when she had to carry out a mission to capture an Inuzuka who was accused of betraying Konoha. Tsume found herself caught between her loyalty to the Hokage, to perform the duty, and also her loyalty to her clan members, to protect one of their own. But then Tsume realized she was a leader, and she needed to be a good example to her clan. So she began to hold onto the principle of choosing the side that will benefit the majority. She knew her clan would understand. They live in a mixed society, and their selfishness would not help Konoha achieve peace.

That was why, when the Third made her promise that she will not object to any attempt of uniting her clan and the Maneki clan using her son and the Maneki girl, Tsume had agreed to it. She knew it would bring benefit to the majority--and who knows, maybe the clans too--even though deep inside her, her motherly instinct was against it. She didn't like the idea that the Hokage would want to use her own son. She wanted Kiba to grow up having free choices of his own. Two different sides of her clashed and neither wanted to give up. Then, at that point, Tsume learned to compromise.

She told the Hokage that she would keep her promise, but she made him promise in return that if the attempts failed, the Hokage would leave her son alone. The Third agreed.

When the Fifth carried out the plan, Tsume watched from the side. She didn't say anything against the Fifth for putting her son and the Maneki girl in the same team, and she also didn't object to the Body Binding jutsu the Fifth placed onto them. But secretly inside her, a small part of her hoped the plan will not succeed. She couldn't imagine it. Her Kiba was too young to get involved with the Maneki girl…or with anyone at all.

But as she stood outside of her son's hospital room, watching through the glass panel on the closed door, a thought came to her head. She watched, somewhat surprised and amused, as the Maneki girl sat beside her son's bed, stroking Akamaru's head on her lap while talking warmly to the dog and her son's sleeping body.

Maybe, Tsume thought, maybe she had been wrong all this time.

She saw Akamaru look up and bark 'at the Maneki girl, to inform Tsume's presence. Tsume watched the girl turned and their eyes met. She slid open the door and walked into the room.

Maneki Tsubasa quickly rose from her seat and bowed her head respectfully at her. Akamaru barked excitedly and Tsume patted the dog's head and smiled. "How are you Akamaru? I haven't seen you in a while,"

Akamaru barked again, happy to meet the Head of the clan. She had to place her finger on her lips and gestured him to keep quiet. Then she faced the girl, "How are you?" she asked.

Tsubasa nodded her head and looked at her shoes, "I-I'm fine," she said softly. Tsume nodded her head too and turned to look at her sleeping son.

"How is he doing?" she asked.

Tsubasa looked up and spoke awkwardly, "Um, Shizune-san said he's going to be fine." She saw the Head of Inuzuka staring at the packet of blood and she quickly explained. "He lost quite a large amount of blood. The medic nin's restored only half of his blood cells counts, because they didn't want to overwork his body, so…um, that's why they're providing him extra blood." Tsume nodded her head. "And they're giving him vitamin K injection as well, to counter the poison."

"I see," The older woman nodded her head. Tsubasa kept quiet in return. Then Tsume turned to look at her again and smiled. "Relax, I'm not going to eat you," she said and laughed.

Tsubasa felt relieved and she broke into a smile. She was nervous because it was her first time meeting the older Inuzuka. After all that had been going on between her and the Head of clan's son, she was scared that she had left a bad impression.

"Okay," she nodded and stepped forward and stood beside Kiba's mother. "Inuzuka-san," she addressed the older woman. "I haven't introduced myself properly, I'm Maneki Tsubasa," she said and bowed her head.

Tsume laughed heartily. "I know you Tsubasa," she smiled. "I've heard a lot about you from Kiba and Hana," she said and looked at her son. Tsubasa looked up and watched the older woman. "Kiba's head was a little messed up after he met you," Tsume said jokingly with a grin.

But Tsubasa didn't find it funny. She, on the other hand, felt guilty. She bit her lips and bowed her head again, this time even lower than she did a few minutes before. "I'm sorry," she apologized.

Tsume blinked her eyes and frowned. "What for?"

"I-I'm sorry for causing your family so much trouble," she explained. "I never wanted things to turn out this way, from being in the same team, and being stuck together. A-and I never expected him to find me when I ran away," she said and paused. "I-If it weren't for me, he wouldn't be here now."

The older Inuzuka looked at her, "Is that why you're scared of me?" she asked and Tsubasa, still with her head bowed, nodded slowly. Tsume chuckled. "Don't worry; I'm not angry at you. Stop bowing." She ordered and the Maneki girl slowly lifted her head and looked at the woman.

Tsume nodded her head and smiled. "Actually, I'm the one indebted to you, for saving Kiba's life,"

Tsubasa shook her head. "No, I didn't do much," she said. "But I am, really sorry for what happened."

"Don't be," Tsume said, shaking her head. "You didn't know how things would turn out,"

"But," Tsubasa objected, "If Kiba and Akamaru didn't come and find me—" her words were cut off when Tsume looked at her and spoke.

"Kiba went to find you on his own choice," she said, "He'd probably deny it, but underneath his rowdy and perhaps, proud appearance, he has a big heart," she looked at her son fondly, "Just like his friends, he won't be at ease knowing a friend of his is facing problems." She explained. "He might look nosy, and he'd probably make up some excuses too, but in the end, he'll try to help that person."

Tsubasa kept quiet as Tsume continued. "I'm actually proud of him, for being able to convince you to return." She said and smiled. Then she turned to face the young girl. "Running away is never an option. It won't solve anything. It'd create more problems actually, am I right?"

She agreed with her, having learnt from experience, and she nodded her head. "Yes. Now the Hokage is asking to see me, one more to add to my list" she joked.

The Head of Inuzuka clan patted her shoulder. "Don't worry, I'll talk to her." She smiled. "If you're not satisfied with the way things are, try to compromise, and don't stop until you're finally happy." she added, "That's what I believe."

Tsubasa looked at the older woman, deep in thinking. Then she nodded her head and smiled. "Thanks. I'll try." Tsume nodded in return and turned her head towards the door when she felt another presence approaching.

The door slid open again and Tsubasa turned her head to find Inuzuka Hana walking into the room. She smiled at them. "Sorry I'm late," she said and then looked at Tsubasa. "I brought someone with me,"

Another figure walked into the room and Tsubasa's eyes widened when she saw the tall, lanky man with prominent jaw line, and long black hair tied at the nape of his neck. His pale face was sunken and Tsubasa wouldn't have believed it was the same person until her eyes met the man's identical pair of golden eyes.

"N-Nii-sama," she gasped. Maneki Tsuno didn't answer in return. His eyes widened when he saw his sister and he hurriedly went to her. Tsubasa stood speechless when she saw her brother's alarmed face. Then she blinked in surprise when her brother leaned forward and embraced her.

Shock, yet touched at her brother's display of affection, tears began forming in her eyes. She had never seen her brother looking so thin and frightened. Her mind began to cloud with guilt for leaving her brother, and for causing him to worry. "I'm sorry," she sobbed into his chest and cried.

Xxx

Tsubasa took a deep breath and bowed her head. "I'm sorry," she apologized to the Hokage.

The Fifth Hokage sighed and rubbed her eyes. The clock on the wall read 9 p.m. She had been sitting in her office for twelve hours now. Earlier that day she received information that Inuzuka Kiba was injured and was taken to the hospital. Then another message told her that Maneki Tsubasa had returned.

It was a hectic day for the Hokage.

"Then, why are you back?" Tsunade asked sourly, clearly not in the mood from a long day at work. "What made you change your mind?"

Tsubasa looked at her feet. "I realized how helpless I was when I wasn't a ninja, and I learnt it was a mistake to throw that ability away." She answered.

"But," Tsunade cut in. "Didn't you run away because you didn't want to be a ninja? You didn't want to be what is expected of you as a Maneki." The Hokage spoke. "The Maneki ninjas are the best infiltrators we have. Your family is gifted with flexibility, stealth…seduction," she added. "Being a spy is already written on your future. If you come back as a ninja, you can't escape from that."

The Fifth leaned forward in her seat and propped her elbows on the desk and rested her chin on her palm. "Then, your attempt to rebel against your family, to prove a point to them, would be wasted, no?"

Tsubasa stood there, facing the Hokage, speechless. She knew the Hokage was right. What's the point of her returning to be a ninja, if she hates what she's going to be in the end?

_Compromise, _a voice told her and Tsubasa remembered the words Kiba's mother had said to her.

"Well, aren't you going to say anything?" Tsunade asked.

Tsubasa looked at her and opened her mouth. "I-I'll try to compromise."

The Hokage raised her eyebrows. "Compromise what?"

"I-I know that the jobs that the Manekis have to do are dirty jobs…but my family is proud to carry them." Tsubasa started. "At first I didn't understand, and watching my three cousins, I thought they were the most disgusting people ever for doing such jobs." She paused and shook her head as the image of her triplet cousins entered her mind. "They are probably evil, on a different matter, but what I mean is, they're doing those jobs for the country." Tsubasa continued. "The missions are horrible to me, but it'd help protect the people. And if the jobs require a little sacrifice in order to gain peace, then I wouldn't mind doing it."

Tsubasa paused and took a deep breath, "But," she said, her eyes narrowed, "I'm not going to give up on my dream to be a vet. And I will work hard in order to pursue it." She told the Hokage. "I will try to negotiate with my family. I would be willing to undergo the family trainings, if they would allow me to become a vet. And if they would allow me to work as a vet full time, I will agree to become a spy when there is time of crisis."

"It's always easier said than done," the Hokage reminded her.

Tsubasa shook her head and she clenched her fists in determination. "No. I will work on it." She said firmly. "I will make it happen. It might sound selfish, for being stubborn to want this, but I feel that even if I have to sacrifice a little, it doesn't matter, because it's my dream. I won't stop until I achieve it."

There was something burning in her eyes, Tsunade could feel it. It could be her resolution, but Tsunade also felt the Will of the Fire that the Third loved to talk about. It was the spirit that really made a Konoha ninja.

Tsunade nodded her head and smiled, satisfied with the girl's answer. "Make sure that will be your ninja way," she said. "And I expect you to keep to that promise, no matter what happens in the future. Don't give up."

Tsubasa nodded her head, and bowed her head. "Thank you," she said gladly. She didn't only convince the Hokage, but she convinced herself too. Tsunade nodded too and waved her hand, gesturing her that they were done. Tsubasa bowed her head again before she turned to leave.

But suddenly Tsunade looked up and stopped her, as if she remembered something that she wanted to say. "Oh, Tsubasa," she called out. "Your selfishness and interest to be a vet actually saved a life today," she pointed out. "If you can help save other people, then your desire to be a vet cannot be a selfish thing, correct?"

Tsubasa understood and she smiled. Tsunade smiled warmly in return. "Welcome back to Konoha."

Xxx

Inuzuka Hana slid open the hospital room and walked in. She looked at the bed and smiled softly, as she watched her brother. She placed the bag that she brought from home on the bedside table and she sat beside her brother's bed.

Akamaru greeted her with a lick and laid his head on Hana's lap, waiting to be pat. Hana didn't disappoint him, and as she stroked Akamaru's fur, she studied her brother carefully.

It seemed like time had fly so fast. The chubby loud toddler whom she would always wrestle when they were small was becoming a fine man. She remembered how much taller she was back then when they stood side by side. But now, she had to look up at him when they spoke. She remembered how he would throw a tantrum and sulk every time after they fight. Now, they rarely fight and even though sometimes--well, most of the times--he still acts like a kid, there were times when Hana noticed him being the responsible man of the house.

She was proud of him, for being able to convince Tsubasa to return. She knew in the beginning her brother hated the Maneki girl. Hana saw how upset and annoyed he was when people began relating him to Tsubasa, and when he found out that the Hokage had planned it all along. Kiba had pride, Hana knew that. And she knew how unacceptable it was for her brother that people had decided his life for him.

But he still put all of that aside and he still went on to find Tsubasa. He stayed there, he didn't give up, and he successfully managed to bring her back. That was saying something to Hana, especially knowing that it was done by her immature brother.

Hana blinked her eyes in surprise when she saw Kiba's fingers moved. Then she saw his face contorting into a frown before he opened his eyes. Kiba narrowed his eyes at the light that entered his vision and he moved his head. Then he looked around him and his eyes widened when he saw Hana and Akamaru.

"Nee-san? Akamaru?" he said, his voice hoarse. He frowned and cleared his throat. Hana filled a cup of water for him while Akamaru barked excitedly, happy to see his master. Kiba smiled weakly at the dog and held out his hand to accept the cup but paused when he saw the tubes connecting into his hand. Then he looked up to see the packets of blood and water above him. "W-where am I?"

"The hospital of course," Hana said and handed him the water. She watched her brother gulped down the water and took the empty cup from him. "Don't you remember?"

Kiba kept quiet and closed his eyes. Then he nodded his head. "I remembered choking up on air. What happened? And how long have I been here?"

"Two days," Hana answered and began telling her brother of the poison that infected his body. She told him what Tsubasa herself had explained to her. "And I don't think it was just pure luck," Hana smiled when she told him how Tsubasa's presumption had saved him. "She took a risk when she declared you were poisoned without having done the proper test. It was dangerous, but she was really confident about it. I think it's because she really knew what she was doing, and that saved your life."

Kiba stared at his sister in silent, taking the information into his brain. Then he spoke. "Where is she?" he asked.

"She went back to her house," Hana answered. "She's a ninja again I heard." She watched how her brother frown and fell deep into his thoughts. He closed his eyes and looked like he was searching for the girl.

Hana could sense her somewhere inside the village, and Kiba seemed to be able to find her too. She heard him let out a small sigh before he turned to face her. "Then, when can I be released?"

"Not so soon," Hana said. "You can only be discharged when the doctor says so." She said and Kiba frowned. Hana laughed softly. "Oh don't worry, Tsubasa won't be going anywhere." She joked and watched in amusement as her brother's face turn a shade of red.

"B-baka," he said, gritting his teeth. Then he ran his free hand through his hair and messed it up frustratingly. "Ah, I'm so hungry." He said and pointed to the bag Hana had brought from home. "What's in there?"

As Hana began to take out the pair of clothes she brought and the bento box she made in case Kiba woke up, she smiled to herself. Her brother didn't even deny it when she teased him, not like before. And she noticed him glancing out at the door and the window, as if hoping for something, or someone to pop into the room. Then she saw him looking down at the necklace hanging around his neck, which Hana noticed seemed to be similar to Tsubasa's own necklace.

A warm feeling swept through Hana, and she wondered to herself. Time had flown by so fast. Before when they were young, after their fights when Hana cried and Kiba refused to apologize, she would snap at him, telling him how horrible he was and that he would grow up alone without love because he couldn't treat a girl nicely. Kiba had laughed back at her then, telling her that he didn't care about girls and love and he'd be fine being alone.

But that had changed now; Hana could feel it and she smiled.

* * *

Same routine guys, review and let me know what you think!

and yes, this story is coming to an end soon..but don't worry, we still have a few chapters left before it really ends.

again, happy MOE day and have a nice weekend everyone!


	30. Three Things

Hey Everyone! It's been a really long time huh? Happy New Year!! I hope the year will brings in lots of good things to all of you! Anyway...here's the new chapter!

As always, thank you to Fanny-kun for beta reading!

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**Cat and Dog 30**

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Chapter 30

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Shikamaru stepped out of the restaurant where he was having lunch with his teammates. While he waited for Ino and Chouji to come out after him, he watched the people walking in front of him with his usual bored expression plastered on his face. Then, he noticed a familiar face and Shikamaru blinked his eyes just to be sure.

"Kiba," he called out, just as Ino and Chouji walked out of the restaurant and joined him on the street.

Ino frowned. "Shikamaru, I know we promised we'd treat you, but the least you could do is to—oh hey Kiba!" Ino smiled and waved her hand. "You're out of the hospital!" she pointed out happily.

Kiba turned around when he heard Shikamaru and Ino. He stopped in his track and neared them. "Hey," he greeted them with a smile and nodded. "Yeah, I was discharged this morning."

Chouji stepped forward and patted Kiba's shoulder, "How are you feeling? Better?" he asked and frowned. "You look a little pale though."

Kiba nodded again. "I'm fine."

"Good to know," Ino grinned. "You looked really bad then,"

Shikamaru spoke next. "Where are you going?" he asked "Shouldn't you be resting?"

Kiba shook his head and laughed. "No way, that's boring," he grinned. "Besides, if I don't get my butt out and start running around the village soon, I'm sure Naruto will never stop mocking me about how weak I was against rat poison," he said with a roll of his eyes.

Chouji laughed, "Let him consume it, and we'll see what happens then," the redhead joked. Kiba laughed while Shikamaru smirked.

Then Kiba cleared his throat and his smile faded. "Actually," he started, "I'm looking for Tsubasa." He explained and furrowed his eyebrows. "I can't find her." He paused for a second before he spoke again. "Have any of you seen her?"

"Eh?" Chouji raised an eyebrow. "You can't find her when you're the expert at smelling people?"

"Ha ha" Kiba laughed dryly and narrowed his eyes, looking serious. "I think she's blocking her presence from me."

"Ahh…and the plot thickens," Shikamaru smirked.

"Oh" Ino suddenly said and Kiba turned to face her, but was taken aback when he saw the way her eyes gleamed. "I know where she went" Ino said, smiling knowingly. "She left for a mission this morning." She said. "Oh, wait, you do know that she got her powers back right?"

Kiba nodded. "I realized that while I was at the hospital. I sensed her chakra."

"Well, anyway," Ino said and neared Kiba, placing an arm around his shoulder. She leaned closer to whisper in his ear. "What are you actually planning to say to her when you meet her?" she asked him quietly. "It has to be more than the 'thank you' words right?" she gave him a grin and winked teasingly at him.

Kiba felt his face grow warm and red and he quickly pulled away from Ino, who laughed at him in return. She walked back to her teammates, stood in between them and wrapped her arms around Shikamaru's shoulders on one side, and Chouji's on the other.

"Anyway, we have to go," she said and smiled cheerfully. "Don't worry, you'll see her soon," Ino said. "She's on a simple C mission, so she'll be back by this evening," she informed Kiba and winked again. "Good luck!" Ino laughed as she pulled her teammates away.

Xxx

Hinata smiled to herself as she watched Kiba sit across from her on the ground and look at his watch nervously. Hinata had an idea why Kiba was acting so weird, but she called out his name and asked anyway. "Kiba-kun, are you waiting for somebody?"

Kiba looked up from his watch and then shook his head, "No no, I was just looking at the time," he told her.

Shino who was seating beside Hinata frowned. "You've checked your watch three times in the past minute. The time doesn't change that much,"

"Stop being a smarty pants," Kiba frowned and ran a hand through his thick messy hair. Then he sighed. "Okay fine, I am waiting for somebody," he answered.

"Tsubasa-chan?" Hinata asked, giggling softly. Kiba looked at her questioningly and opened his mouth to ask her when Shino cut him off.

"It's so obvious Kiba. Even Naruto would notice." He said.

Kiba furrowed his eyebrows. "You guys are acting weird he pointed out and smirked. "You guys missed me that much huh?" he joked.

"It was a peaceful time for Hinata and I," Shino said solemnly.

Kiba scowled. "Yaroo! Are you looking for a fight—" his words were cut off when Hinata stood up and stopped him from getting annoyed with Shino.

"R-relax Kiba-kun," Hinata said worriedly. "Shino-kun didn't mean it." She said. She waited until Kiba calmed a little before she continued. "While you're waiting for Tsubasa-chan, why don't you tell us about your time back at that town?" she suggested. "How was it?"

Kiba scoffed and crossed his arms. "Why don't you ask Shino? He had his bug spying on us."

Shino looked up to face the hound master. "It was only for a while. You didn't screw it up in the end, I hope."

"Of course not." Kiba replied. "We didn't even fight."

Shino pushed his glasses higher. "Then, why do you look so anxious to meet her?" he said and furrowed his eyebrows. "it's like you're planning to explain some things to her."

Kiba raised an eyebrow. "Since when have you become the detective here?" he asked, annoyed. Kiba looked away for a few moments before he turned back, frowned and looked at the grass in front of him. "She didn't come to visit at the hospital," he started. "I wondered if something was wrong."

Hinata smiled at her teammate. "I heard Tsubasa-chan had to stay indoor to gain her strength and her cat's as well," she answered. "I'm sure you didn't do anything wrong to her Kiba-kun,"

"Knowing Kiba," Shino spoke. "I'm sure he said something bad." Kiba eyed him dangerously but Shino ignored him and continued. "Didn't you?" he asked seriously.

Kiba hesitated for a second before answering. "I'm not sure. I remembered saying some stuff to her before I fell sick that day…" he said and remembered the time when he told Tsubasa that he didn't want her to come back. "That might have hurt her feelings--but I don't know!" Kiba said, sounding frustrated. "Its girls you know! I have no idea what they're thinking!" he frowned and then glanced at Hinata. "No offense."

Hinata shook her head. "It's okay. But why do you really want to see her Kiba-kun?" she asked.

Kiba paused and looked at the Hyuuga girl. Since when have his friends become interested in his private life? "I just want to say thanks" Kiba answered, "a-and--" he stopped and hesitated. Kiba knew what it was that he wanted to say to Tsubasa, but was he ready to let his teammates know about it? His face grew warm when he thought about the matter and he quickly cleared his throat. "And some other thing…you know…" he continued.

Shino smirked at him, clearly enjoying his time mocking the Inuzuka. "Like what?"

"Screw you," Kiba narrowed his eyes, "I'm not going to tell--", Kiba's words were interrupted when suddenly he felt the pendant on his chest grew warm. "Wait, she's back!" Kiba said and quickly stood up. With a quick and hurried goodbye to his teammates, Kiba left the training ground to find the person he was looking for the whole day.

Shino turned to Hinata and the Hyuuga girl smiled in return. "Did you release one of your bugs to follow him, Shino-kun?" she asked. "I didn't know you were interested in Kiba-kun's life,"

"It's good to know more about your teammates," Shino answered and smirked in return. "I am surprised you are just as interested in this matter, Hinata."

xxx

Kitai Sho was glad that Tsubasa decided to return to Konoha and be a ninja again. Of course, he had told her before that whatever decision she makes; he would be supportive of her. But deep inside him, he had a nagging feeling that the choice Tsubasa made to run away was not good at all. But, he respected her decision anyway, because that is how he is.

But now that Tsubasa is back, Sho made a promise to himself that if ever his teammates make a decision that involves running away, he would speak him mind and prevent them from doing so. He realized that respecting their decisions has nothing to do with this. It wasn't worth the time and energy to be enveloped in guilt and fear for agreeing with something he doesn't even agree with deep inside. Perhaps, he thought, it'd be better to point out the mistakes than to witness in silence the mistakes those dear to him keep on making.

"So the meeting is tomorrow?" Sho heard Kenji asked Tsubasa, bringing him back from his thoughts. "Are you even sure you want to be in the meeting? I mean…it's full of those snooty people," Kenji said as the three of them walked down the street of Konoha after returning from their mission.

Tsubasa who was standing in between them laughed. "Yeah well, I want to support Nii-sama," she said and looked at the gray cat she was hugging close to her chest. "And they're still family, right Yue-chan?"

The cat nodded her head. "If you just ignore Ueno, you'll be fine."

Sho smiled at his teammates, "Hey, after we finish reporting to Tsunade-sama, let's go to the café and celebrate Tsubasa's return."

Kenji grinned, "Of course, you are paying right?" he asked then he turned to Tsubasa, "Hey, you know, they have this new waitress at the café and she's hot," he said excitedly, making an hour glass shape with his hands in the air and wolf whistled.

Sho rolled his eyes, "Just ignore him, that's what I've been doing while you were gone."

Tsubasa laughed and watched amusedly as Kenji feigned a pout and sulk. She patted his head and pretended to console him while Sho watched. Then he heard something. _Tsubasa!_

The redhead narrowed his eyes. He swore he heard someone calling out Tsubasa's name. He blinked his eyes and paused on walking to turn around and see who it was that was calling his friend.

But he didn't manage to turn his head around when Tsubasa suddenly stopped him. She placed her hand on his arm. "Don't turn." She said, her eyes still looking forward, as if to pretend that they were still talking. "It's Kiba. I sensed him." She said, clasping his arm tighter with her fingers. "Let's just walk," she said and pulled Sho along.

Kenji blinked his eyes when he realized what happened and he frowned. "He obviously wants to see you, why don't you?"

Tsubasa shrugged. "I just don't feel like talking to him,"

Sho took a short glance at Kiba who was quickly approaching and turned to Tsubasa. "He's looking for you, so I guess he has something to tell you."

"Yeah," Kenji nodded and grinned. "Probably something good too," he winked at Tsubasa.

The Maneki girl frowned. "Right before he was poisoned, Kiba was upset that I decided to return." She told them. "Things are going back to the way they were before I left," she said and walked hurriedly. "And because of that, I don't want to hear anything he says."

Sho looked at her teammate as he furrowed his eyebrows. He didn't understand her reason, and his gut was telling him that it was wrong. He stopped walking and Tsubasa paused and turned, surprised. "Tsubasa, I think you have to hear what he's going to say," he told her.

"Whoa," Kenji said, crossing his arms. "I was going to say that."

Tsubasa blinked her eyes, "What?"

"He's probably going to explain to you why he said that he was upset with your decision," Sho told her. "And if things are the same way they were before you left, he wouldn't be chasing you now, would he?" he said.

Kenji raised an eyebrow at Sho, surprised at his friend's words. Tsubasa frowned and still decided to leave. Behind them, he could see Kiba jogging up to them, and Kenji quickly grabbed Tsubasa's hand to prevent her from leaving. "You know, as shocked as I am with the words coming out from Sho's mouth, he's right."

Tsubasa opened her mouth to argue but stopped when Kiba reached them. Kenji smiled at Tsubasa and released her hand. "We'll see you at the café," he said.

Sho nodded his head. "Yue-san, perhaps you would like to join us first?" he asked the cat in Tsubasa's arm. Yue nodded and jumped free from Tsubasa's hold. The gray cat smiled encouragingly to her granddaughter before she left with Sho and Kenji.

Xxx

Kiba watched them leave and turned to face a surprised Tsubasa. He panted and wiped sweat from his forehead. "Damn," he said, taking a lungful of air, "I guess I'm not fully recovered. I can't jog without losing my breath."

He saw Tsubasa's eyes shoot up to him with concern and he smirked at her. Her face turned red and she looked away. "What do you want?" she asked, looking at her shoes interestedly.

"Why are you avoiding me?" he asked her back.

"Am not." She answered.

"Then look at me."

He saw her body freeze and her eyes looked up at him again. She didn't say anything to him, so Kiba spoke again. "You didn't come to visit me at the hospital,"

"I was busy," Tsubasa said flatly. Then she broke contact and looked elsewhere. "Look, I know what you're going to say, so you don't have to tell me. It'll save you the trouble. I admit, you were right."

Kiba blinked his eyes. "About what?"

Tsubasa frowned and crossed her arms. "About things being the way they were before."

He was right. The words he said that time did hurt her feelings. He didn't know why he would say things without thinking of its consequences. He should explain it to her before things get bad.

Kiba looked at her, noticing how uncomfortable she looked standing close to him. "Look, I was wrong. I don't see any reason why things would change."

"I have one," Tsubasa smiled sadly. She looked straight into Kiba's brown eyes and spoke. "I'm a cat, and you're a dog."

Kiba furrowed his eyebrows. "What?"

"You said it before. Back at your house, to your sister. I heard it. I'm just a cat to you." Tsubasa reminded him. A vague memory of the conversation he had with his sister a long time ago surfaced. He remembered his sister asking him if he liked her, and he told her no, she was just a cat to him. He didn't know she heard it.

"At the town, I was a normal person, but now I'm not. And that's why things will change, or go back to the way it was, whichever way you want to put it." Tsubasa said. She dropped her hands to her side and began to leave.

"Wait a minute!" He reached out to her, to stop her, but Tsubasa raised her hand.

"Didn't we agree to stay far away from each other before?"

The tone of her voice sounded hurt and pained and Kiba was taken aback by it. She turned around, ready to leave.

But Kiba wouldn't have it. He quickly grabbed her wrist. Tsubasa turned, her eyes widened. "Listen to me first, dammit." He frowned. "I waited a whole day to see you to clear up the things I said. Don't make me feel like I wasted my time for nothing."

Tsubasa tried to pull her hand away, but Kiba held it tight. She bit her lips, frustrated. "Don't do this Kiba. I don't want to—"

Kiba was frustrated as well. "Shut up and let me explain!"

Tsubasa kept quiet and narrowed her eyes. She didn't like the tone he was using. "I don't want to hear it," she said slowly, her voice sounding a little annoyed. "God, you're stubborn."

"_I'm_ stubborn?" Kiba stressed. "You're the one who's refusing to listen to me! What are you, scared?"

"I am not stubborn." Tsubasa said defensively. "And I'm definitely not scared."

Kiba stared at her. "Then stop being a coward and listen."

She glared at him. "I'm not a coward either!" She hissed.

Kiba laughed mockingly. "Don't deny it. You've always been a coward. You run away from home, and now you refuse to listen to what I have to say." He listed. "I guess it is in your nature after all. To be afraid of the dogs." He smirked.

Tsubasa glared daggers at him. She balled her hand in fury. "Damn you! You—" her words were caught in her throat when she felt a familiar force building up inside of her. Her eyes widened and, just like how it had happened before, it happened again that day.

Once more, Tsubasa found herself stuck to Kiba's shoulder.

She glared at him but Kiba was still smirking. "Hey, you knew this was coming. You wanted it to happen,"

Tsubasa frowned and crossed her arms frustratingly. "I only wanted to know if the curse is still there," she said and sighed. "Apparently it is."

Kiba ran a hand through his hair and smiled smugly. "Now that we're stuck, you have no other way but to listen to me." He saw her scowled, but he ignored it as he jumped from the ground, taking her along, towards a nearby tree.

"Hey hey! What are you doing?!!" Tsubasa shouted at him. Before she could stop him, they were already standing on a sturdy tree branch and Kiba pulled himself down, along with her, and sat down.

He looked at her, the victorious smile plastered on his face irritated her and she glared at him. "Couldn't you have chosen a better place? Why does everything have to happen on a tree?"

Kiba laughed. "Because we're ninja, duh." He said and she rolled her eyes. He stopped laughing and looked at her seriously. "And because I don't want other people to see or hear us."

Tsubasa placed her elbow on her thigh and rested her cheek on her palm as she looked at him. She sighed dejectedly. "Then what is it?" Tsubasa watched him gazing up at the sky, a calculated look on his face. She furrowed her eyebrows and opened her mouth to ask when he suddenly turned, stared right into her golden eyes and held up three fingers.

"Three things." Kiba said. "I'll simplify everything into three."

She nodded her head. "Good, the shorter the better," she muttered and he ignored it.

"Firstly," Kiba said. He closed one finger, leaving the other two fingers left in a V-sign. Tsubasa watched him and waited. He smiled at her. "Thank you." He said and she felt the sincerity in his voice. "Thank you really," he repeated. "For saving my life."

Her eyes softened at him and a small smile appeared on her lips. She nodded her head. "You're welcome," she said. "Secondly?"

Kiba narrowed his eyes at her and frowned. "Don't rush me." he answered. "I don't say this kind of things often, so you better savor the moments." He huffed. Right then he looked like a kid to her, and Tsubasa suddenly remembered the first time she met him. It was at the Academy, when they bumped into each other and had their first fight. She laughed softly. The memory lifted her mood.

"Fine." She nodded her head at him. "Take your time."

He raised an eyebrow and gave her a weird look, but continued nonetheless. He ran a hand through his thick hair and cleared his throat. "I'm sorry." Kiba spoke.

Tsubasa kept quiet and let him continue. He looked at her and she could feel that he was nervous. He went on. "When I said things were going to be the same way before we left, I didn't mean that you'd be just a cat to me." He told her. "You're not just a cat, I'm sorry I said that before." He apologized.

"And also, at that time, when I said it, I didn't mean that I didn't want you to come back," Kiba said. He looked awkward as he explained, but he kept going. "I felt glad that you decided to, but I thought that it was for the best. Your dream was coming true at the town."

Tsubasa raised her head and dropped her hand. She sighed before she spoke. "I have to tell you something about that." She told him. "I ran away because I didn't want to be just another Maneki spy in the future." She explained. "But it's not the same now. I'm doing my best to prevent it from happening."

Kiba looked at her, confused, and Tsubasa continued. "I talked to the Hokage about it. And also with Nii-sama and Arai-sama. We agreed on a compromise. They would let me become a full time vet, if I successfully undergo the family training." She told him. "It's not what I want initially, but I'm very happy and satisfied with this."

"And your family is okay with that?" he asked.

Tsubasa nodded her head. "It's all thanks to your mom actually. It's because of the advice she gave me." She smiled. "She's nice."

Kiba blinked his eyes surprised. "You talked to my mom?" he asked and Tsubasa nodded. She told him of the short encounter she had with the Head of the Inuzuka when he was hospitalized. When she finished Kiba laughed. "Unbelievable," he shook his head.

They were silent for a minute and then Tsubasa remembered. "So, what's the third thing you want to tell me?" she asked.

His eyes widened. "Oh," he said and nodded. "Right." He laughed nervously before he cleared his throat and took a deep breath. Tsubasa noticed how red his face was and when he finally turn and stared straight into her golden eyes, her heartbeat quickened.

His lips parted and he paused. Tsubasa raised an eyebrow, "What?" she asked. It took him a few seconds before he answered her.

"I like you."

Finally, finally he admitted it.

Kiba felt his face was so hot he could have exploded. However he smiled in relief, glad that it was finally out. He waited for Tsubasa's reply and studied the expression on her face.

She was looking at him in disbelief, blinking her eyes a few times just to make sure she wasn't dreaming. Then she furrowed her eyebrows. "Is this a joke?" she asked.

Kiba's smile turned upside down. "Why would I joke about something like this?" he asked feeling annoyed though his face was still red. "I'm being serious idiot!"

Tsubasa let the information registered in her brain before she spoke next. "Oh." She said and nodded her head. Then it really hit her. Her eyes widened and her pale cheeks reddened. "Ohhh…"

Scratching the tip of his nose, Kiba pouted. "Well are you going to answer me?" He sounded nervous. He has never been this nervous before.

She stared at him for a good couple of seconds before she responded. She leaned towards him, and boldly kissed him. Kiba blinked in surprise for a moment before his instinct took over and he kissed her back. He felt her smile against him and he smiled too as he understood. Though she didn't announce her reply, he heard her loud and clear. _I like you too._

Lips pressed against lips, their kiss was simple, sweet and short. That was because they were distracted when the force that bound them together felt weakened and loose. They broke apart just as they noticed that the jutsu had come to an end.

Tsubasa blinked her eyes and she looked at Kiba quizzically. "D-do you think the kiss broke the jutsu?" she asked.

Kiba shrugged. "Maybe," he said and remembered what her teammates had told them a long time ago. _Maybe a hug, or a kiss can break it_. "Maybe it broke the jutsu for real," he said and Tsubasa nodded her head.

"Could be." She agreed. Then she frowned when she remembered something. "We were glued together earlier. But back then at the town, um, our first one," she blushed and continued. "How come that didn't break the jutsu?"

Kiba thought about it. "Probably because you were normal," he suggested. Then his eyebrows furrowed when he remembered something important. _That wasn't the first one. The first one was—_

"What?" Tsubasa asked, interrupting his thought. Kiba looked at her and contemplated whether he should tell her or not. He gulped. He can already predict the possibility of a fight in the next conversation.

_But it's better to tell her now_, he thought and sighed. "Urm…" he began awkwardly. "Uh…actually…"

Xxx

"Hey, hey, look who's here!" Naruto said excitedly, the next day, when he saw Kiba and Tsubasa arriving at the barbeque restaurant all of them were gathering in.

"Hey," Kiba said and greeted his friends while Tsubasa smiled at them. The two of them acted normal, as they sit across from each other. None of their friends or teammates knew what happened between them the day before, and they weren't planning to tell either.

Well…not yet anyway.

"Now don't you fight with each other and get stuck together again okay?" Ino joked. "We'd like to have a decent meal for once."

Shikamaru frowned. "How decent will it be when you and Sakura get into another fight?"

Ino glared at him and Sakura frowned. "Ino and I have come to an understanding." She said proudly and Shikamaru and Chouji rolled their eyes.

"It won't be a decent meal if Lee starts fighting with Neji again," Tenten muttered under her breath beside Tsubasa and the latter smiled.

"Aw, but I want to see Kiba fly across the table and get stuck to her," Naruto pouted and pointed to Tsubasa. "This would make a great animal cartoon," Naruto added. "A cat and a dog stuck together."

Kenji laughed. "It should be called CatDog," he suggested and Naruto agreed.

Tsubasa smiled too and she glanced at Kiba who only smirked.

They both knew there will be no flying, and no getting stuck together, and no inspiration for any cartoon if they fight. The curse had ended. But they weren't planning to tell any of their friends about that either…for now.

"Ah, so how was the family meeting Tsubasa?" Sho asked, changing the subject. Everyone else paused and paid attention. The fact that the Maneki clan had a big family meeting that had the Hokage and the two advisors to join as well caught their interest.

Tsubasa smiled softly. "Mm, it went well. They came to an agreed solution." She said. "The clan from Sands accepted Nii-sama as the Head." Noticing a waiter walking by, Tsubasa raised her hand to make an order.

She left the discussion as it is, but Shikamaru and Neji, being the geniuses that they are, knew there was more. "And?" the latter asked. "What was agreed in return?"

Tsubasa paused and dropped her hand. Kiba saw that she looked hesitant and he frowned. Her eyes shifted and she gazed directly into his eyes. When she spoke, it was like she was addressing it to him personally.

"In return, we agreed to unite the family in one household as soon as possible." She said and Kiba already knew where the conversation was heading.

"And that means?" Kenji frowned. He had a feeling what Tsubasa was going to answer, but he needed to be sure.

Tsubasa sighed. She continued staring into Kiba's eyes, and he saw the determination in her eyes. He closed his eyes just as Tsubasa dropped the bomb.

"It means I'm moving to Sands." She told them.

* * *

Would you guys believe me if I told you that this story is ending soon? Like really, really, really soon?

But yeah, sadly it is true. But until that day comes, do leave me a review and let me know of what you guys thing! And do give me ideas for new stories too!


	31. By Your Side

Hey Guys! I can't believe it too...but here it is, the last chapter! It's been a long journey hasn't it..it's sad that it's coming to an end. But I suppose, everything has to end one day..and something new will start. With that said, I'm proud to tell all of you that I'm working on a new Naruto fanfic! Check out my profile for it okay?

Anyway..putting that aside..let's ejoy this chapter first okay?

Oh! And as always, thank you goes to my beta reader Fanny-kun. This wouldn't be posted up here if it wasn't for you!

* * *

Tahara Kenji blinked his eyes when he opened his apartment door to find Inuzuka Kiba standing outside. "Hey," he greeted.

Kiba held out his hand and Kenji saw the old pendant and necklace that belonged to him. Then he remembered that he had lent it to Kiba to help him find Tsubasa. "I'm returning this," Kiba told him.

Kenji took the necklace from him and nodded his head. "Thanks," he said. Kiba nodded his head as well.

"Thanks too," he said. "For that."

"Aah," Kenji nodded. There was silence between them. Then Kenji spoke again. "I can't believe she's leaving really soon."

"Yeah," Kiba nodded.

Kenji tilted his head. "You look fine," he smiled teasingly. "Considering that you guys are—"

Kiba quickly cut him off. "We're not like that," he objected, though his face was slightly flushed.

"Oh you're not?" Kenji raised an eyebrow. He had his fun teasing Tsubasa about her new relationship with the Inuzuka, and now it was time to bug Kiba about it.

Kiba cursed the time all of his friends found out what had happened. It took one argument with Tsubasa, and Naruto's loud mouth commenting that they didn't get stuck and everyone became a busybody. He glared at Kenji who was unaffected by it. Then he frowned and changed the subject "It's her decision to move. I won't stop her."

Kenji laughed and nodded his head. "I know…"

Kiba nodded too. "I'll be going then," he said and excused himself. But before he could turn and walk away, Kenji stopped him.

"Hold on," the latter smiled mischievously. "I have something to show you."

Xxx

**CAT AND DOG**

Chapter 30 –Final

Xxx

_Doko mademo tsuzuku michi ni wa  
__Ironna koto arun da ne_

_On the roads that continue on forever_

_Lots of things happen, dont they?_

It was a farewell party for Tsubasa. Kenji and Sho planned it, and everyone else joined. If it were left to her, she would have preferred a small dinner between her and her teammates, but the party wasn't a bad idea. It gave her the chance to talk to everyone and say her goodbyes.

The café where the three of them had always visited was the venue that they picked to host the party. It was filled with their friends, and their friends' friends and almost every other teenager that they've seen in Konoha.

"Wow, it's a full house," Kenji grinned when he saw the mass of crowd in the café either picking up food from the buffet tables lined up against the wall, or forming small groups between themselves as they chatted.

Sho chuckled. "This is my first time seeing the staff looking so busy," he said as he watched a waiter running back to the kitchen carrying an empty tray of food which he had just refilled a few minutes ago. Akimichi Chouji and Uzumaki Naruto stood near the buffet table, waiting obediently for the food to arrive. Despite having devoured the whole tray of food in record breaking time, the two of them still looked hungry. Sho winced and felt sorry for the staff on duty tonight.

"So what do you think?" Kenji asked Tsubasa with a grin. "We're doing great in throwing a party don't you think?"

Tsubasa looked at the café, the decorations and the group of friends that surrounded her and she smiled. "Thanks," she told him, "this is great."

She looked around her group of friends again and her smile faltered a little. Although it was a full house like Kenji said and that all of her friends were there, Tsubasa knew someone was missing.

Kiba.

He was supposed to be here already. He went on a mission with his team a few days ago, but they had returned today. She saw Hinata and Shino amongst the crowd of people but he was nowhere in sight.

Worriedly, she tried to find him, and with a small amount of chakra, her senses told her that he was still at his house. Tsubasa frowned. She found it slightly annoying that he was late but she pushed her thoughts aside and try to not let it bother her.

_He probably had to do something but he'll be here soon,_ she reasoned with herself.

It has been almost a month since her family made the decision to move. And while she and Kiba thought they'd have time to spend with each other, they never had the chance to as he was busy on missions and she was busy making preparations to move.

She'd be leaving the next morning, and secretly Tsubasa wished she had time to spend with him privately so she could say a proper goodbye.

After their confessions, the both of them had discussed that they would not become serious. They were both still young and it wasn't appropriate considering the threat of ninja war in the near future looming over their heads.

But they did agree that they were more than just friends.

"Tsubasa did you hear me?" Kenji asked and touched her shoulder, shaking her from her stupor.

"Huh?" Tsubasa asked.

Kenji sighed, "I said, go and enjoy yourself. Talk to these people," he told her and smirked. "You know, to fill up your time before _he _gets here," he said teasingly.

Tsubasa frowned. Ever since her friends found out what happened between her and Kiba, her friends wouldn't stop bugging her about it.

"Yeah sure," Kenji said sarcastically with a nod. He placed his hands on her shoulders and turned her around to face the crowd, "Now go and talk to everyone," he instructed and extended his hand to point to a girl who was pouring herself a cup of punch at the end of the room, "and introduce me to her," Kenji said with a grin.

Xxx

Checking his reflection in a mirror for the umpteenth time, Kiba ran a hand through his unruly hair and frowned when he found that it was impossible to manage it.

He pondered for a second if he should use hair wax—it'd be nice if he shows up in front of her looking neat—but he tossed the thought aside when he caught a glimpse of the clock in his room. "I should leave now or I'll be late, huh?" he asked Akamaru who was watching him from his bed. Akamaru nodded. Kiba nodded as well and reached for his wristwatch on top of his drawer.

His eyes caught a small black box sitting on top of the drawer and he frowned. A thought ran in his head.

_Should I bring this?_

He took the box and opened it. Squeezed between the foam in the box were two silver rings. Kiba stared at them—they were identical silver bands with no intricate designs, carvings or jewels only that they were different in sizes—and he remembered how he had gotten them in the first place.

It was the time when he went to Tahara's house to return the latter's necklace, when Tahara told him he had something to show to Kiba.

_"You know my uncle makes this stuff right?" Tahara Kenji asked him, pointing to the pendant he had in his hand._

_Kiba nodded his head. _

_Tahara stopped walking when they reached his room and Kiba watched him pulled out a cardboard box from under his bed. The box was opened and inside it Kiba saw many small black boxes._

_"What are those?" he asked in curiosity._

_Tahara smiled as he took one box out and tossed it to Kiba. He caught it with ease and studied the box warily. _

_"My uncle does a business selling these kinds of accessories. You know, they contain a little jutsu that connects a particular accessory to its siblings, like my necklace with Tsubasa's and Sho's," Tahara explained and saw Kiba still staring at the box. "Open it."_

_While he watched Kiba pulling the box lid, Tahara continued. "My uncle doesn't only make necklaces, he makes other kinds too like—"_

_"Rings?" Kiba asked, staring confusedly at the silver bands. Tahara nodded his head._

_"Right, couple rings." He said with a grin. "It's a big hit. It works just as well as the pendants, but it's special, well, since it's for couples." He said. Then noticing the still confused look on Kiba's face, Tahara continued._

_"He gives me lots of this, so you can have that one," he pointed to the box in Kiba's hand._

_"What for?" Kiba asked, eyebrows furrowed._

_Tahara frowned. Why is he so slow? "So you can take one and give the other to Tsubasa, duh."_

_"Oh," Kiba said, understood. Then he scowled. "Wait. But we're not a couple," he corrected._

_"Yeah whatever you say," Tahara waved his hand as if dismissing Kiba's statement. He rolled his eyes, "Treat it as a friendship gift or whatever." Then he paused and cleared his throat. He crossed his arms and his expression became serious. "I thought this would come in handy if ever Tsubasa decides to run away again," he explained._

_"She won't," Kiba said, convinced. He knew Tsubasa had learnt her mistakes and he saw the determination in her eyes before. _

_Tahara smiled. "I know." He nodded his head. "But it's better to be prepared." Then with a small chuckle he continued, "Well if it ever happens, then I don't have to lend you this again," he pulled up the pendant in his hand._

_Kiba thought about it and slowly he nodded his head. "Thanks."_

Kiba continued to stare at the rings. This was difficult. If only they had come in a different shape then he wouldn't mind giving it to her now. But with rings…well he doesn't want to give a wrong signal.

Akamaru barked at him, telling him he was running late and Kiba quickly glanced at the clock again. "Shit," he cursed and quickly pocketed the box in his jeans and left his room hurriedly.

He ran down the stairs and headed towards the door, ready to sprint his way to the café. However, the presence of three adults who were waiting for him in the living room made him pause.

"Kiba," his mother called him, "Come here," she ordered him and he furrowed his eyebrows confused. What did his mother, his sister and—

His eyes widened and he froze when he realized who the third person was. How in hell did he not sense _his_ presence?

Xxx

"Y-you look really pretty Tsubasa-chan," Hinata complimented her when Tsubasa came to their small group.

Tsubasa smiled, "Thanks, you look really pretty too," she said as she studied Hinata's long, white jumper and leggings. Then she turned to Shino and smiled, "And you look good too Shino-kun," she said as she regarded his high collared jacket. It was definitely a nice view to see everyone wearing something else than their usual ninja clothes.

"Did you sense where Kiba is?" Shino asked her. "My bug told me he was at his house. I believe now he is on his way."

Tsubasa nodded her head, "Yeah I can sense it too." She could feel that he was making his way to the café, an hour later than he should have.

"W-we're sorry that he's late," Hinata said with a small frown. "We asked him earlier today and he said he re-remembered."

"It's fine," Tsubasa lied, her lips forming a tight smile. Kiba was so dead. Being ten to twenty minutes late was fine with her, but an hour late? Didn't he care that they only have a short time to spend together now?

"Hey," Sakura greeted them as she and Ino made their way over.

"Here," Ino said with a grin as she handed Tsubasa a gift bag. "This is from us,"

Tsubasa took the present and thanked them.

"So Romeo's late huh?" Ino started with a smile.

"That's unusual," Sakura added. "He normally comes early if there's free food…like those pigs," she said and turned her head around to see Chouji and Naruto continue to consume everything on the buffet table.

Ino laughed. "He's probably grooming himself up, you know, to look nice for once," she joked.

Sakura snorted. "That's unlikely,"

Tsubasa only smiled in return. Then noticing the two girls' eyes staring at her steely, she blinked.

"So, tell us," Ino said with a grin. "How did you guys get together? Since when did it start? From what we saw, the two of you always quarrel…so is it because of the whole 'opposite attract' thing?" she asked enthusiastically.

Tsubasa grew red. "I-I," she stammered. Gosh, to be asked about this, was embarrassing. "I, uh we're, um, we're not together…like that," she tried to explain.

"Still," Sakura pressed on, "To be able to get Kiba to realize things like this…that's already something major."

Ino nodded in agreement, "Yeah, and here we thought all of our guy friends are just clueless and hopeless when it comes to girls," she said and then quickly turned to Shino, "No offense,"

Shino, who looked totally lost in the conversation, merely shook his head.

"So come on, spill it," Ino persuaded. "Share us your tips," she winked. Then she turned to Hinata, "Did you see it coming Hinata? Between the two of them?"

"Uhh I-I…" Hinata didn't know what to say. She found it awkward to be talking about her friend's personal life.

At the same time, Shikamaru—who was walking nearby—overheard Ino prying into Tsubasa's private matters and quickly stopped her. "Oi, Ino, just leave her alone," he stated, looking as bored as ever.

Ino frowned. "Aww, but Kiba's not telling us anything, and we're friends, right?" she asked Tsubasa with a hopeful smile.

Before Tsubasa could reply, her senses became alert and she turned her head around just as Shino muttered, "Speaking of Kiba…he's here already,"

Xxx

Wow.

That was the first thing that came to Kiba's mind when he entered the café and spotted Tsubasa among his group of friends. He was only facing her back, but he thought she looked amazing.

She wore a dress. It was his first time to see her like this. It was a dark brown, short sleeve dress that reached her knees. Her long black hair was twisted into a low bun, leaving tendrils of her hair to cover her face.

Although he was only facing her back and he also wasn't accustomed to see her dressed in any other clothes except her ninja outfits, Kiba was certain that he wasn't mistaken. That girl he was gawking at was Tsubasa.

It wasn't because he could smell her scent—that too was a reason—but it was the hair ornament that she used to decorate her hair, was the one he bought for her before.

Kiba smiled to himself. However the smile didn't last long when he saw Tsubasa turning herself around to face him, and her lips were pressed into one thin line.

He knew it straight away; she was annoyed at him for being late.

Kiba walked nearer to all of them and raised a hand, "Hey," he greeted.

"Hey Kiba," Ino spoke first with a smile, "So nice of you to finally join us," she said sarcastically.

"Cut it out," Shikamaru said and Ino pouted at him.

Kiba smiled a little more awkwardly as he looked at Tsubasa directly. "Hey,"

Her eyes were narrowed dangerously, "You're late." She pointed out.

"Yeah I know," he said with a nod and he rubbed the back of his neck, "Um, something came up," he told her.

"Like what?" Shino asked. "Hinata and I already reminded you about the party earlier today."

Kiba furrowed his eyebrows. Why the hell was Shino butting in? The look on Tsubasa's eyes told him she wasn't satisfied with his excuse. "It's private," he answered. "Why the hell would you care?" he glared at Shino.

The latter remained stoic. "A good ninja would keep his promise." He stated matter of factly. "Even if it means putting family matters aside."

Kiba rolled his eyes. "It had nothing to do with my family, idiot."

"Then?" Sakura asked, eyebrows furrowed curiously.

Kiba blinked his eyes and kept quiet. He didn't want to tell them what happened at his house. They'd make fun of him. "Err…" he was at loss of words. Tsubasa and the others were staring at him, waiting. He turned red, embarrassed. "It doesn't really matter!" he quickly said to divert the topic. "I'm here already, right?" he said and rolled his eyes. He was beginning to find his friends' interference a little irritating. "What's the big deal anyway." He muttered to himself.

He heard someone gasped and he saw Tsubasa's eyebrow went up. Damn, he just said something wrong and she heard it. Panicked, Kiba thought of things he could say to save the situation, but it was too late. With one last glare, Tsubasa turned on her heels and left.

"Ouch," Ino winced. "You haven't even arrived for a full five minutes and you managed to piss her off… _Tsk. Tsk._"

Hinata smiled reassuringly at him, "Just tell her you're sorry Kiba-kun,"

"Go," Shikamaru said, giving him a slight push. "You're so troublesome."

Without saying anything to his friends in return, Kiba did just as they told him. He went after Tsubasa who was standing in front of the buffet table.

He knew she had sensed him coming, but he still wanted to make his presence known. He saw her tapping her foot impatiently while looking at the empty tray of food on the table and he quickly asked, out of curiosity. "What are you doing?"

He didn't expect her to answer him, but she did. "Waiting for the food to come and take some before Chouji and Naruto can gulp down all of it again," she told him without much of a glance. Then she continued. "I'm also wishing you'd disappear and never come back,"

Kiba sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Fine, I'm sorry."

This time she turned to face him. One perfectly arched eyebrow rose up. "What for?" she asked him.

It was a test. A trick question. But Kiba didn't understand it yet. "I don't know," he shrugged. "Whatever it was that pissed you off."

Tsubasa turned around again to face the empty tray. She crossed her arms on her chest and tapped her foot again. "Then you can take your apology and stuff it up your ass. I don't want it."

Kiba narrowed his eyes. First he was instructed by his friends to apologize, now after he had lowered his ego and said sorry, she was throwing it back at him? This was too much. "Hey! I'm being nice here!" his voice was slightly raised, to show his annoyance. He was aware that they were now gaining attention from all other people.

"Clearly you're really bad at being nice," Tsubasa retorted back at him. "Just go back home to whatever it is that's more important."

Kiba gritted his teeth. "What do you want from me?"

"To go to hell." She replied.

"Fine. But I'll still be seeing you there, so it doesn't solve anything." He retorted.

Tsubasa's head turned to face him again and this time she narrowed her eyes. "You're an ass," she snapped. "If this is unimportant to you then leave!" she glared into his eyes. He stared right back at her and for a few moments, none of them spoke or even blinked. That was until Tsubasa's facial expression softened and she finally looked away.

With a sigh, she closed her eyes and rubbed her temples. "Just go." She told him. Her voice was soft, but Kiba knew she was still upset and angry at him. "I've ruined my own party, and I don't have the mood to fight with you."

Kiba frowned. If Tsubasa didn't have the mood to quarrel with him…then this must be something serious. His frown deepened. Damn her. How was she able to make him feel guilty so easily?

"Tsubasa," he called out. She didn't reply him. He neared her and touched her shoulder. She shrugged his hand away and moved a step further.

Kiba didn't give up easily. He neared her once more, placed his hands on her shoulders and forced her to face him. She frowned at him and he saw the tears that welled up in her eyes. Damn his soft side!

He looked right into her eyes and spoke the first thing that he thought. "I'm sorry." He apologized for the second time, this time meaning it.

"I'm sorry I ruined your party." He told her. It felt awkward to talk to her like this, but he knew it was necessary. "And I'm sorry for being late too."

"And," he continued with a deep breath. "You are important to me." He admitted with a small smile. He gave her shoulders a light squeeze. "Believe me."

His face turned red when he said it but Kiba didn't care at that moment. He also didn't care that everyone else in the room was watching him, including the café staff who was refilling the food into the tray beside them.

Kiba took one hand off Tsubasa's shoulder and he reached for a flower from the centerpiece on the buffet table and showed it to her. He smiled nervously. "Is that okay?" he tried. He regretted not listening to his sister's tips on how to apologize to the female. He really sucked at this.

But somehow, thankfully, it seemed to have worked on Tsubasa. She took the flower from him and a small smile appeared on her lips. Kiba sighed in relief. His smile widened as he watched her twirl the flowers in her hand.

Then he blinked his eyes when he saw the way she was smiling and looking at him. It seemed mischievous, like there was a private joke going on that he didn't know about. From the corner of his eyes he saw Sakura and Ino had the same smiles on their lips.

Kiba frowned. Something was going on, he realized. But before he could open his mouth and ask, he heard noises coming from in front of him and behind him.

Chouji and Naruto who had just noticed the buffet tray was full again, marched forward hurriedly for yet another helping. They both came from opposite sides, and in their rush for the food, they pushed both Kiba and Tsubasa aside.

Instinctively, Kiba reached out for Tsubasa and held her before she'd fall from the impact. However, by doing so, Kiba lost balance of himself and instead, he leaned towards her.

The next thing he knew, he was staring right into Tsubasa's eyes, their lips were pressed together and the whole crowd was cheering behind them.

Xxx

"You can't still be angry," Tsubasa asked Kiba with a smile as he walked her back home from the party.

He narrowed his eyes at her. "How would you feel if you embarrassed yourself by doing something serious only to know that it was a prank?"

Tsubasa laughed. "Fine, I'm sorry," she smiled. "But to be fair, all of us thought it'd serve a good punishment for you for being late,"

"Hn," Kiba feigned a scowl.

"Why were you late anyway?" Tsubasa asked, changing the subject.

"Someone came to the house," Kiba stated simply.

Tsubasa nodded. "My brother?" she guessed.

Kiba turned to face her, surprised. "How did you know?" he asked back in return, his plan to pretend to be sulking to her totally forgotten.

"I couldn't sense where he was, so I guessed he must've been somewhere he didn't want me or the family to know." She looked at him, eyebrows furrowed. "So it's true? What did he want from you?"

Kiba noticed the curiosity in her voice and he smirked. Payback time! "That's between me and him." He saw the unconvinced look on her face and he felt satisfied.

"What?" Tsubasa asked. "Can't you just tell me?" she was curious.

He shook his head. "Nope, it's a secret. A guy thing." He lied. It wasn't really a secret. Maneki Tsuno didn't actually tell him to keep his visit a secret from his sister. But Kiba found pleasure in teasing her, so he kept at it.

Truth was, Maneki Tsuno only came to see him to properly, and in person, thank him for bringing his sister back. He also came to chat with Kiba's sister and mother, but that was different story.

"Fine," Tsubasa said with a shrug. "It doesn't matter if you want to tell me or not. He probably came just to thank you and bid farewell to your family."

Kiba narrowed his eyes. She was good. He needed to change the subject quickly before she realized that her guess was correct. "Uh, so whose idea was it to prank me?"

"Why do you need to know?" She asked.

"So I can pummel the guy to death later," he replied.

Tsubasa laughed. "Good luck with that. It was Ino." She answered. "I don't think you'd hit a girl, would you?"

"No," he said and smirked. "But I know the next time she pulls me into her flower shop to help, I have a reason to refuse."

"Why didn't you guess it was me?" Tsubasa asked.

Kiba glanced at her for a few seconds. "You wouldn't agree to do something which would end up with us kissing," his face was red now, though she couldn't see it in the dark, "in public". He continued.

He remembered the commotion that happen a few hours earlier right after they accidentally kissed. Everyone was clapping, cheering, whistling, laughing and teasing them. They both got so embarrassed that for the rest of the night, they were awkward with each other. They tried to stay away from each other, but in the end, when they were all about to leave, Kiba's friends pushed him towards Tsubasa and ordered him to send her back. He told them he was planning to anyway, and received more teasing.

Now that there were the two of them, and with no teasing from anyone else, they didn't feel as awkward as they did a few hours ago.

"Ah, that," Tsubasa laughed and felt her cheeks reddened too. "That wasn't part of the plan," she confessed. "It was really an accident."

Kiba smirked. "Leave it to Naruto to make everything interesting." He rolled his eyes. "And to think I gave out my most heartfelt apology for nothing."

Tsubasa smiled. "To be fair, I was being honest when I started arguing with you. I was really annoyed at you, so the apology worked."

He raised an eyebrow, "Oh yeah? You were really upset?"

"Kinda," she nodded her head, keeping her gaze down to her shoes as she spoke, too embarrassed to look at him. "I was kinda hoping you'd come earlier so we could hang out more." She admitted. "You know…since for the past few weeks we were too busy, we didn't really get to see each other."

Kiba turned and stared at her. She was still looking down at her shoes, almost afraid to look at him as she spoke. "But it's okay now, I know the reason why you were late." She smiled softly. "And it was kinda childish anyway."

A smile appeared on Kiba's lips and a thought lingered in his mind. So…she really had wanted to spend more time with him? Somehow hearing her say it made him feel oddly, yet pleasantly warm inside.

He stopped walking. "Hey Tsubasa," he called her out. As she turned her head around, Kiba grabbed her hand and quickly led her out into the woods. She followed him without any objection, and when they were far from any possible night lurkers wondering around the village, they stopped walking and Kiba leaned her against a nearby tree, his hands placed on her shoulders.

Tsubasa raised an eyebrow and smirked. "If you try to do anything stupid, I'll make sure you won't be able to use a certain part of your body for the rest of your life." Although she said it, being alone with him in the woods didn't scare her at all. She knew him and she felt safe with him.

Kiba laughed. "Noted." He said and smirked too. "Though I don't think I'd do anything you wouldn't like." He raised an eyebrow suggestively at her in return. "Consider this making up for the time lost."

His hands moved from her shoulders to cup her face. He smiled at her as he leaned in closer and Tsubasa smiled back when their lips touched. The gift bags she was carrying dropped to the ground as she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him back. His smile widened and he pulled her closer.

Kiba admitted he was never close to any female other than his family. Hinata was different, she was like his family. Before, he didn't understand why boys would spend so much time and effort to get girls' attention. He never had time to ponder about it too, since he was busy training Akamaru or trying to learn cool techniques to boast about. But now he understood. Kissing Tsubasa was…nice. It's definitely something he wouldn't mind doing it over and over again.

When they pulled apart, Tsubasa blushed as she gazed at him, and Kiba grinned in return. He stuffed his hands into his jeans pocket and he touched something.

The box. The rings.

His heart quickened. Should he give it to her? The meaning of the gift was too deep and inappropriate, he reasoned. But…on the other hand…Tahara had a good point. He was in debate with himself.

As he grasped the box tightly, Kiba looked at Tsubasa, studying how her mouth was slightly parted and her eyes were staring straight at him, as if she was searching for something, something—oh heck! He knew what he has to do.

He opened his mouth to speak. "I have to tell you something," he told her, and surprisingly, she mouthed the same thing too at the same time.

Kiba raised an eyebrow, surprised and Tsubasa laughed. "You first," she told him.

He quickly shook his head, "No you," he insisted.

She nodded her head. "Okay," she started. "Before I begin, there's something you should know, my family, we're very good at sensing everything in our surrounding," she took a deep breath, "and sometimes," she sighed, "We are also very good at sensing our futures too."

Kiba didn't understand where this was heading but he nodded nonetheless. "Okay, so you can predict the future?"

"Me? No," Tsubasa quickly shook her head. "I'm not good at it, it all comes out in a blur." She told him. "But some of my family members are good at it." She explained. "It comes in a dream, and you can't really choose what future you'd want to see…it'd just come. Most of the times they are pretty accurate."

Kiba still looked confused but Tsubasa went on. "A few days ago, my brother had a dream about the future, the near future." She was hesitant to continue but after a few seconds she continued. "Something really bad is going to happen in Konoha. It's terrible."

Kiba blinked his eyes when he heard it from her. "That's it?" he asked and smirked. "I gotta say that's a pretty obvious premonition, isn't it?"

"I guess…" Tsubasa shrugged, "Niisama didn't mention specifically what would happen…he did mention about death of a teacher…" Tsubasa said and when she saw the worried look on Kiba's face she shook her head.

"But that's not the point," she continued. "I just want to let you know that, even though we can sense the future, it doesn't mean that we're moving away because we are cowards." The look in Tsubasa's eyes told Kiba she was being serious. "When the time comes, we'll come back and defend this village." She told him, determined.

Kiba smiled and nodded his head. "Good to know that you'll still be a Konoha ninja inside,"

"I'll always be a Konoha ninja," Tsubasa said with pride. "I'm going to work hard there with my family trainings and when I've mastered it all, I'll definitely move back here," she told him. "This is my home."

Hearing what she had said made Kiba think. He clasped the ring box in his palm. He made his decision. He won't give the ring to her now. There was no point of giving her the ring so he could track her down when he knows and believes that she'd never repeat her old mistakes. He should give her that much trust.

But that doesn't mean he'd throw the rings away. Kiba thought it'd be better to save it for a later day. Maybe when she returns to Konoha for good. By then he'd have a strong reason, and it'd be more meaningful too.

"So what were you going to say?" Tsubasa asked him, pulling him from his chain of thoughts.

"Hm? Oh right." Kiba nodded. He released his grip on the box, pulled his hand out of his pocket and took her hand. He looked at her, just as his brain try to conjure up a new thing to say to her.

"What?" Tsubasa asked.

Ah. He found one. "I was just thinking that the next time I travel with Akamaru, we'll come and visit you there." He told her with a smile. That wasn't a bad idea.

And she seemed to be thinking the same thing too. "That'd be great." She grinned. "I can't wait."

There was silence between them as they stared at each other. Shyly, Tsubasa broke the contact, looked down and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

Kiba's smile widened as he observed her. He raised his hand up to her hair and touched the hair stick he bought for her. "I remember this," he said and pulled it out. He watched her hair cascade down her shoulders and back in loose curls.

Tsubasa looked up at him; her golden eyes shone under the moonlight. Kiba blinked. Something tugged in his chest when he realized how beautiful she looked right there.

He grinned. Wasn't he a lucky guy?

"Will your brother get angry if you come back home a little late?" he asked her. Tsubasa tilted her head and furrowed her eyebrows quizzically at him. But when he neared her and touched her long hair, she understood.

She smiled as she leaned towards him and wrapped her arms around his neck. "I think he'll understand," she answered.

Xxx

"Are you sure you got everything?" Sho asked Tsubasa for the second time that morning.

"Yes," she replied him with a sigh. "You're such a worrywart."

Kenji who stood beside them laughed. "You shouldn't have asked that," he started. "If she had left something behind, we could either go there to see her or she can come back."

Fumie shook her head as she watched her students' antics. She smiled and turned to Tsubasa. "Take good care of yourself there."

Tsubasa nodded her head. Tears formed in her eyes when the thought of her leaving her team behind hits her. She reached forward and gave her teacher a hug. "Thank you for everything."

Wiping her tears away, she turned to her two best friends. "I'll miss you guys a lot," she admitted. She hugged Kenji who was closest to her. "Don't get Sho into too much trouble," she warned.

Kenji smirked at her. "I'll try," he said as he patted her head.

Then Tsubasa moved to Sho. "Can you manage Kenji on your own?" she asked as she hugged him.

Sho chuckled and nodded. "I hope so," he said and as he released her hug, he cleared his throat, trying to keep himself from crying too. "Where is Kiba anyway? Isn't he coming to see you off?"

Tsubasa shrugged. "He's probably still sleeping," she guessed and waved her hand off dismissively. "It doesn't matter," she said, trying to convince herself too. This wasn't farewell forever. She was still going to see him, and she'll come back to Konoha too, so goodbyes aren't really necessary.

And it applies to her friends too. This farewell isn't permanent.

Tsubasa wiped her tears and smiled at her friends. "You'll come and visit right?" she asked. "And give me a call sometimes?"

Both Sho and Kenji nodded their heads. Sho smiled. "Don't worry, we have these remember?" he said as he pulled out his pendant from inside his tshirt.

Kenji did the same and a thought lingered in his head. He grinned. "Hey, did you receive anything from—"

His question was cut off short by loud barking. Tsubasa turned her head just in time to see Akamaru running towards them and lunged at her. Tsubasa blinked her eyes in surprise, and the next thing she knew, she was lying on the ground with Akamaru licking her face.

She patted the dog and a smile appeared on her face. She was happy that she was finally able to be close to a dog. "I think you're cool, Akamaru," she told the dog and he wagged his tail happily in agreement with her.

"Tsubasa," Yue called her. Tsubasa turned to her cat who was pointing somewhere as a gesture for her to look. She followed the direction and her eyes widened. There, on the roof of a nearby building, stood many of her friends, waving their hands at her.

One of them jumped off the roof and Tsubasa watched as Kiba came near. He walked towards her and bowed his head respectfully to her cat/grandmother. "Take good care of yourself Yue-san," he told her and Yue nodded and smiled in return.

Then Tsubasa watched him bowed towards her brother and Arai who were standing not too far away talking to the Hokage. They acknowledged him and nodded their heads at him. Finally, Kiba turned to her. He took a deep breath and then grinned.

"So, I'll see you soon?" he asked. Akamaru barked at him and Kiba's grin widened and he scratched his dog. "I mean, we'll see you soon,"

Tsubasa smiled and nodded her head. "Definitely."

Kenji groaned. "Oh come on? That's it? No goodbye kiss?"

Tsubasa rolled her eyes and Sho smacked Kenji on the back of his head. Kiba glanced quickly at Tsuno and rubbed the back of his nape tensely. "Uhh…"

"Don't worry," Tsubasa assured him. With a quick look at her brother she smiled, "He doesn't hate you."

Kiba laughed nervously. "Good to know."

Looking at him, Tsubasa took a deep breath and sighed. "I guess it's good bye for now then," she said and Kiba nodded his head. "Stay safe," she said, reminding him of what she told him yesterday night. He smirked at her but did nod his head in return.

Tsubasa walked to where the rest of her family was and she bowed her head to the Hokage. "Thank you, Hokage-sama, for everything." She said sincerely. If it wasn't for the Hokage, things would be different for her now.

Tsunade nodded her head. "You did good, Tsubasa," she said, glancing back and forth from Tsubasa to Kiba, a knowing smile on her face. "I'm proud of you."

Tsubasa blushed in return and nodded her head slowly. Her brother neared her and spoke. "We should leave now." He told her and bowed at the Hokage.

Watching her family members take their leave, Tsubasa turned her head around for one last time. She smiled and waved to her friends. Tears gathered in her eyes again and Tsubasa quickly blinked them away. She continued waving and her eyes caught Kiba's.

He was waving too, but he was also staring straight at her. He nodded his head meaningfully and Tsubasa understood it. The memories of her time with him the day before came to her and though he was standing a few feet away from her, she could feel his presence so close to her, and she knew everything was going to be fine.

Finally, she stopped waving and turned around to her family. With a deep breath, Tsubasa continued her walk, without looking back. This wasn't the end, she told herself and smiled.

This definitely wasn't the end.

_Kimi ga namida no toki ni wa  
Boku ga soba ni iru kara  
Hanarebanare no yoru datte  
Boku wa soba ni iru kara_

_Whenever you're in tears,_

_I'm by your side,_

_Even on nights when we're apart,_

_I'm by your side._

* * *

The End.

Wow...I can't believe I wrote that. This feels so sad...but don't worry...this is definitely isn't the end..I have the epilogue waiting...do you guys want to read it? Review this and let me know!

Oh..and do check my profile for my new fanfic, its called Naruto:The Academy. It's an AU story...basically a RL High school story. It's a het story too, focusing on NaruHina, SasuSaku,NejiTen and ShikaIno, so if you're a fan..do check it out. Oh! And let me know if you think I should put in Tsubasa there so she can keep Kiba company!

Click the button k? Please and thank you!


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